Chelsea injury news: Defender blow in Atalanta BC defeat, major doubt for Everton game

Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana has emerged as a major injury doubt ahead of Saturday's Premier League fixture against Everton.

The Frenchman was only named as a substitute for Tuesday's Champions League fixture against Atalanta BC, a game in which the Premier League club suffered a 2-1 defeat.

However, Fofana had been introduced as a half-time replacement for Trevoh Chalobah when Chelsea held a 1-0 advantage at the break.

While there appears to be no issue with Chalobah who was seemingly substituted due to load management, that is not the case with Fofana.

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Fofana suffers eye injury against Atalanta

In a challenge on the halfway line, Fofana appeared to foul Gianluca Scamacca, the referee choosing to let play go on at the time.

Instead of reprimanding the 24-year-old when there was a break in action, the referee stopped the game to allow Fofana to receive treatment for an eye injury

Scamacca's studs made contact with Fofana's face as he went down, leading to several minutes of treatment for the player.

After initially attempting to continue, Fofana called on the referee to halt the game, indicating that he was struggling to see out of his right eye.

After the match, Maresca confirmed that Fofana was "struggling to see a little bit", but was hopeful that he would recover in time to be available at the weekend.

Fofana has made eight starts and three substitute outings in all competitions this season with Enzo Maresca prioritising managing his fitness over using the centre-back every match.

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Who could replace Fofana against Everton?

In the event that Fofana sits out the Everton game, Maresca will need to find an alternative partner for Chalobah in the middle of the backline.

Benoit Badiashile will be regarded as the favourite, but Josh Acheampong - who impressed at right-back against Atalanta - and Tosin Adarabioyo are other options.