Chelsea injury news: Enzo Maresca update on key stars ahead of Wolverhampton Wanderers EFL Cup match

Chelsea boss Enzo Maresca has revealed that Joao Pedro, Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo are all dealing with injuries, which are impacting their ability to train between games.

The Blues suffered a 2-1 defeat against Sunderland in the Premier League on Saturday, with the result leaving them in ninth place with 14 points.

Maresca will want to bounce back against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Wednesday in the EFL Cup, though his side may have to find ways of dealing with a number of injury issues.

The Chelsea manager spoke of several doubts within his squad for their clash against Wolves, telling reporters: "I think Joao [Pedro] is not training every day because he’s managing a little bit himself from the injury problem.

"[Caicedo] is exactly the same, Enzo [Fernandez] is exactly the same. We have four or five players that unfortunately, because of some problems, they cannot work every day and they try to make the effort to play the game."

The Blues are already dealing with injuries elsewhere in the team, including to influential centre-back Levi Colwill, who is set to miss the rest of the season.

Wolverhampton Wanderers vs. Chelsea: Who should Maresca start?

The EFL Cup should not be seen as a priority by Maresca considering the importance of qualifying for the Champions League, so it would be sensible to make changes to the team that lost against Sunderland.

Romeo Lavia should come into midfield given he was left on the bench against Sunderland, and selecting him would allow one of Caicedo or Fernandez to recover.

If Maresca opts to rest both midfielders, then perhaps Andrey Santos should partner Lavia on Wednesday.

In the forward line, attacker Estevao Willian may be a candidate to replace Joao Pedro, though it remains to be seen how well the winger would adapt to playing in a more central position.

Could Enzo Maresca be sacked by Chelsea?

No team in the Premier League has spent more money than Chelsea since the arrival of owner Todd Boehly in 2022, and the club's expenditure dictates that they should be challenging at the top of the table.

The Londoners are already eight points behind first-placed Arsenal, and they have finished 12th, sixth and fourth in the three full seasons since Boehly's arrival.

While Maresca is dealing with several injuries to key players, the quality at his disposal is still strong, and losing at home against newly-promoted Sunderland after initially taking the lead cannot be excused.

The Chelsea boss should not yet be sacked, but results will have to improve if he is to remain at Stamford Bridge.