Chelsea injury news: Liam Rosenior delivers positive update ahead of Aston Villa showdown

Liam Rosenior has hinted that a number of Chelsea players are on the brink of a return from injury ahead of Wednesday's game at Aston Villa.

The Blues make the trip to Villa Park sitting six points adrift of their fourth-placed opponents in the Premier League table.

At a press conference on Monday, Rosenior remained a frustrated figure after the manner of his side's 2-1 defeat at Arsenal on Sunday.

As well as conceding from two set-plays, Chelsea had Pedro Neto deservedly sent off with 20 minutes remaining for two yellow cards in the space of three minutes.

However, Rosenior has revealed that his squad could be bolstered by the return of several players from injury.

Rosenior delivers positive Chelsea injury update

When asking for information on his team's injury situation, Rosenior suggested that Marc Cucurella was the closest to coming back into contention after a hamstring injury.

Rosenior told reporters: "Cucu is looking really good. Hopefully, we can get him back involved, if not for Wednesday, for Saturday, for sure, which is great for the schedule we've got coming up.

"Estevao [Willian] is back on the pitch running, which is great. Jamie Gittens is doing really well.

"It's been brilliant to have Romeo Lavia get his first minutes in a long time. I felt he looked really strong (against Arsenal). So, yeah, the quicker we get all of our players healthy, the better."

When quizzed on how far away Lavia is from a start, Rosenior added: "Close. I want to manage him in a different way in terms of his rehab and hopefully, once he's back fit, which he is now, he stays fit."

Are Chelsea duo James, Palmer available for Villa game?

While Rosenior has managed the fitness of Reece James and Cole Palmer since his arrival, the pair appear to be available for the visit to Villa.

On James, Rosenior said that he is "absolutely fine", while Palmer has been passed fit despite a knock suffered in the first half at the Emirates Stadium.

Rosenior revealed: "He took a knock. He was absolutely fine. He's looking really good, I think you can see.

"I think you can see in the way we've managed him over the last six weeks and he played 83 minutes [vs Arsenal]. That was tactical.

"He's absolutely fine to start the game on Wednesday."

Chelsea square off against Villa having failed to win any of their last three fixtures in the Premier League.