What happened to Wesley Fofana? Reports reveal why Chelsea star missed Bournemouth clash
Wesley Fofana's absence from Chelsea's matchday squad to face Bournemouth in the Premier League later today (May 6) raised a few eyebrows.
The Blues fans' worst fears have been confirmed, as the French centre-back has been sidelined with a hamstring injury (h/t Football.London). It remains unclear when he suffered the issue and there is no clarity on the extent of the injury.
Fofana started in Chelsea's 3-1 Premier League loss against Arsenal at the Emirates on May 2. But he was substituted in the 86th minute for Trevoh Chalobah, who has made the starting XI against Bournemouth.
The Englishman partners Thiago Silva, Benoit Badiashile and Ben Chilwell in defense, while Conor Gallagher, Enzo Fernandez and N'Golo Kante start in midfield. Noni Madueke, Mykhaylo Mudryk and Raheem Sterling have been given the nod in attack.
Fofana's injury issues have prevented him from having a productive debut season in west London. He was signed for a fee of £75 million plus add-ons from Leicester City but has since started just 17 games across competitions for his new team.
The 22-year-old missed a big chunk of the season due to a knee injury, from which he has since recovered. The Blues are in desperate need of stopping their uncontrollable slump under Frank Lampard. They have lost all six games across competitions under their caretaker manager so far.
Frank Lampard backs Chelsea fans to stick with the team amid woeful form
Chelsea have had a terrible season so far as they find themselves 12th in the league with 39 points from 33 league games.
A top-four finish has been out of the equation for weeks, while the Blues are still facing an unlikely but horrifying possibility of relegation. Chelsea are also out of all competitions and have just five games remaining in the season.
It is easy for fans to turn their back on the players and the team when the results are not going their way. But caretaker manager Frank Lampard believes the Blues faithful will continue to stick with the team in the coming weeks.
The English tactician told reporters, via the club's official website:
"The fans will stick with the team. I don’t have to tell them much more than that. You could see that with the Chelsea fans at the end of the Arsenal game. From when I first joined, the club has gone from a really big football club to a monster of a football club worldwide, so the fanbase goes much wider than that."
Chelsea fans will not have a European game to look forward to in a season for the first time since they finished 10th in the 2015-16 campaign. They won the Premier League title the following season.