Chelsea star Wesley Fofana feared to have picked up injury after Nottingham Forest draw

Today at 07:32 AM

There are growing concerns Wesley Fofana may have suffered an injury in the wake of Chelsea’s 1-1 draw with Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

Fofana played the full 90 minutes of Sunday’s clash at Stamford Bridge, where Noni Madueke found a second-half equaliser to rescue a point for Chelsea.

The 23-year-old was ruled out of the entirety of last season after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament but has returned to establish himself as a key figure under Enzo Maresca, starting every Premier League match this term.

However, Fofana will miss Chelsea’s upcoming clashes with Liverpool and Newcastle after picking up his fifth yellow card of the top-flight campaign versus Forest.

It’s feared Fofana could also be struggling for fitness, with L’Equipe reporting that the defender is a doubt for France’s Nations League double-header against Israel and Belgium over the coming days.

The report claims Fofana is due for tests with the national team doctor upon his arrival at France’s Clairefontaine training complex today and will be closely monitored by medical staff.

The nature of Fofana’s problem remains certain but Didier Deschamps is likely to provide an update on the centre-back’s fitness ahead France’s trip to Budapest to face Israel on Thursday night.

Last month, Fofana was pictured with heavy strapping around his left knee following Chelsea’s 3-0 victory over West Ham.

The centre-half was replaced by Axel Disasi in the second half versus the Hammers and appeared in some discomfort as he hobbled back onto the pitch to applaud Chelsea’s travelling support at the London Stadium.

Chelsea manager Maresca played down the severity of Fofana’s issue at the time and insisted the Frenchman was substituted for his own ‘protection’ due to his recent return from a long absence.

'No, no, no [it's not serious]. The reason why we changed him is because we try to protect him a little bit,' Maresca told reporters.

'In the second-half, they changed [Mohammed] Kudus to this side and it was probably a big risk to keep him but there is not any injury.

'I really love and we love with Wes because he is doing fantastic after one year of injury.

'For any player that is out for a year, it is not easy and he is doing top. This is the only thing we want from him.'

Fofana received his first call-up to the French national team in March 2023 but subsequently withdraw from Deschamps’ squad through injury.

The former Leicester man went on to make his international debut three months later in a thumping 14-0 win over Gibraltar.

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