Chelsea are preparing for a huge Champions League clash against Paris Saint-Germain, and Liam Rosenior has been handed a major injury boost
Levi Colwill was back in Chelsea training on Tuesday after six months out with a knee injury(Image: (Ben Whitley/PA Wire))
Chelsea have been handed a major injury boost with Levi Colwill captured on the grass at Cobham. The defender has missed the last six months with a serious knee injury, but he joined the majority of the Blues squad in the early stages of Tuesday’s training ahead of their Champions League last-16 first leg against Paris Saint-Germain.
Since suffering the issue back in pre-season, Colwill has not been spotted doing any form of ball or outdoor work, but his presence outside of the gym in early March suggests a full return this campaign and a potential call-up to England’s World Cup squad is very feasible.
That may not come as a major shock to Liam Rosenior and his staff, though, following the former’s positive words on Colwill just last month.
When asked how he was recovering ahead of the trip to Arsenal, the 41-year-old simply said: “Levi is doing really well with his long-term rehab.”
While his return to light training was a major boost for Rosenior, one player that continues to be absent is Estevao. The Brazilian is still recovering from a hamstring injury, with the Chelsea boss admitting he is being managed carefully.
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Before the FA Cup fifth-round win over Wrexham, he said: “He’s back on the [training] pitch, but he’s not ready for this one. We need to be really, really careful, given it was a hamstring injury. He just needs to clear a few more markers before we put him back in.”
Estevao also missing training on Tuesday has indicated he will be unavailable for the trip to Paris. Though Colwill has made progress, there is no chance of him featuring against PSG with Jamie Gittens also unlikely to feature despite being very close to returning from a hamstring problem.
As for Cole Palmer, Marc Cucurella and Reece James, they were all spotted in the session, with the trio having had injury issues recently and thus having been managed.
Chelsea head to the Parc des Princes on a high, having reached the FA Cup quarter-finals and beaten top-five rivals Aston Villa in the last week.
The latter result has moved them to within three points of Unai Emery’s side and level on points with Liverpool following their defeat to Wolves.
Arne Slot’s side beat them in the FA Cup a few days later and were handed a nightmare quarter-final tie away to Manchester City. Chelsea, however, got the dream fixture, as they will host League One strugglers Port Vale next month for a place in the final.
The last seven days for PSG have not been as fruitful, however, with Luis Enrique’s side being beaten 3-1 by AS Monaco in Ligue 1 last Friday.
However, their full focus for the coming 10 days is on Chelsea having seen their domestic clash against Nantes for this weekend postponed.