Chelsea hope to have Moises Caicedo and Noni Madueke back to face Aston Villa on Sunday and see Armando Broja take a big step towards full fitness by playing for their under-21s in the next week.
Midfielder Caicedo and winger Madueke missed Chelsea’s goalless draw against Bournemouth on Sunday after returning from international duty with knee and muscle issues respectively, the pair becoming the latest Blues stars to join the injured list.
But their omissions were precautionary and their problems not considered serious enough to see them miss more than the one game in a fitness boost for head coach Mauricio Pochettino who was without 12 players at Bournemouth.