Chelsea injury, suspension news vs. Astana: Romeo Lavia added to sidelined list

Chelsea are back in action on Thursday when they go up against Kazakh outfit Astana in the Conference League.

The Blues continued on an upward trajectory on Sunday when they rallied from two goals behind to record a thrilling 4-3 victory over Tottenham Hotspur.

Although Enzo Maresca will name a much-changed team for this game on the back of having already recorded four victories in the League Phase, the Italian is dealing with a mounting injury list.

Here, Sports Mole rounds up the away team's latest injury and suspension news ahead of the long trip to the Middle East.

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Status: Out Type of injury: Hamstring Possible return date: Unknown

Fofana picked a hamstring injury in the recent win over Aston Villa, and Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has confirmed that the centre-back will miss the next four to five weeks with the problem.

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Status: Out Type of injury: Hamstring Possible return date: Unknown

James, who has been restricted to just four appearances this term due to injury issues, is currently recovering from his latest hamstring problem, and a return before the end of the year is seen as unlikely.

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Status: Out Type of injury: Hamstring Possible return date: Unknown

Kellyman, who arrived at Chelsea from Villa over the summer, is yet to feature for the Blues due to a troublesome hamstring problem, and the 19-year-old is not expected to be available for selection until 2025.

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Status: Out Type of injury: Illness Possible return date: December 15 (vs. Brentford)

Mudryk has been a notable absentee from the last two squads due to illness. Although he could have been in contention to return, the winger has been left out of the youthful squad that has travelled to Kazakhstan.

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Status: Out Type of injury: Muscle Possible return date: Unknown

Although Lavia is ineligible for this fixture, the midfielder would not have featured anyway courtesy of picking up a muscle injury against Spurs. Maresca suggested that his withdrawal at half time was a bid to ensure that the Belgium international was fit for later in the month.

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Status: Out Type of injury: Unknown Possible return date: Unknown

Although Felix would likely not have travelled to Kazakhstan, it has been reported that the Portugal international has picked up an unknown issue in training.

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Status: Out

How many games?: One

The one disappointment from the win over Heidenheim in the previous Conference League fixture was Casadei collecting a second yellow card in the closing seconds. As a result of his red card, the Italian will miss out on this fixture.