Enzo Maresca: Enzo Fernandez is a doubt for Chelsea vs Ajax

Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez missed the win this weekend, and Blues boss Enzo Maresca confirmed he is dealing with a small problem.

The ‘fantastic’ Chelsea ace was a massive miss in the middle, even though the West Londoners managed a victory without the Argentine international.

The more worrying news for Chelsea is that Fernandez may not be fit for the mid-week Champions League clash with Ajax at Stamford Bridge.

Following Chelsea’s win over Nottingham Forest, Maresca said (via Football London): “Enzo has a small problem, but we are not able to say if he is available for Ajax.”

Argentina let Fernandez return to Chelsea, citing a swelling. The 24-year-old has been a mainstay in the team with no breaks, and this problem comes as no surprise.

The Blues will be hoping this week is enough for him to rest and recover, with the club missing his distribution and box-crashing ability.

In his absence, Andrey Santos struggled to have the same influence in the Chelsea engine room.

Even though he won 5/9 duels, the Brazilian completed only six of his 12 passes (50%), missed a big chance, and was dribbled past once.

Santos is still finding his groove at Chelsea and should clearly be behind Fernandez in the pecking order. He still needs time before he can usurp his place in the starting XI.

Thankfully, Maresca confirmed that defender Wesley Fofana is not injured, and he was trying to protect him by keeping him out of the squad for the match against Forest.

Maresca said, “Wes is just a way to try and protect him. I really like Wes, and he is going to play games. He will be available for Ajax.

“With Wes, with Romeo (Lavia), with Reece (James), we need to do what we have done with Reece.”

Lavia completed another 45 minutes after returning from a long-term injury, and Tosin Adarabioyo is also back after a brief absence, a small let-up for the injury-hit squad.