Chelsea have reportedly been handed a further injury blow with Benoit Badiashile set to spend months on the sidelines.
Throughout the 2022-23 campaign, the Blues have been plagued by selection issues caused by long-term injuries to a number of their key players.
Such regular occurrences have contributed to Chelsea sitting down in 12th position in the Premier League standings and missing out on European qualification for next season.
However, with Mauricio Pochettino due to be appointed as the club's next head coach, there is optimism that the Argentine can lead a turnaround in fortunes.
Having joined Chelsea for an alleged £32.7m fee from Monaco in January, Badiashile has been earmarked as a key player for the West Londoners.
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The 22-year-old has been provided with 10 starts and one substitute outing in the Premier League, his one goal coming versus Bournemouth earlier this month.
Badiashile would have retained his place for the game against Manchester City on Sunday, only for Frank Lampard to reveal ahead of that fixture that the France international had sustained a groin injury.
While no update has been provided by Chelsea, the Evening Standard says that the centre-back will be sidelined for as many as four months.
The report claims that the training-ground injury has resulted in Badiashile undergoing surgery on Monday, which will lead to a long layoff.
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Not only will Badiashile miss the final two Premier League fixtures against Manchester United and Newcastle United, he will be absent from pre-season.
Although it is plausible that a return to training could come in August, it appears likely that no competitive appearances will be made until after the September international break at the very earliest.
Pochettino had already been set on keeping Levi Colwill at the club with the England Under-21 international impressing during his outings on loan at Brighotn & Hove Albion this season.
The 20-year-old will now seemingly have a better chance of being fast-tracked into the starting lineup on the left-hand side of what is expected to be a back four.
Darren Plant
