Well, well, well. We didn’t see this bombshell coming on a Tuesday morning.
Fabrice Hawkins of RMC Sport is reporting exclusively that Wesley Fofana is going to be back in Chelsea’s “group”, presumably meaning the matchday squad, for tonight’s game against Southampton.
The defender hurt himself against Aston Villa at the start of December, and hasn’t been seen since.
🚨🔵 🇫🇷 Exclusive #Chelsea
Wesley Fofana is back in the group tonight against Southampton ☑️ pic.twitter.com/cefb3yLEfx— Fabrice Hawkins (@FabriceHawkins) February 25, 2025
Back at the start of January, Enzo Maresca stunned everyone by claiming the former Leicester defender would be out until the end of the season. Those comments have now certainly been shown to be a case of mistranslation or misunderstanding, as Fofana is back now, months ahead of the end of the campaign.
He was spotted training on the grass earlier this month, leading most of us to think a return sooner than that was possible, but a return before the end of February wasn’t on anyone’s bingo card.
Return of Fofana changes everything for Chelsea defensive dynamics
We still can’t believe he will pick up any minutes after a long time out, but Fofana’s boost is a huge moment tactically and potentially in terms of morale too. The team has really suffered since he’s been out, and while that’s partly coincidence, there’s no denying that his style of defending suited the way Enzo Maresca wanted to set up.
Fofana’s speed and front foot style allows the team to push further up. We’ve also seen fellow central defender Levi Colwill struggle without Fofana alongside him. There should be no need for Fofana to play tonight against a weak Southampton team, but if he can continue to recover through this upcoming free weekend, we could potentially see him in action very soon.
Is this the light at the end of the tunnel?
