The new season of the English Premier League is knocking on the door and Chelsea have lost Levi Colwill for the majority part due to ACL. Just when the Chelsea fans were hoping to begin the new campaign with full strength and fitness, an unfortunate ACL injury has sidelined their promising centre-half, Levi Colwill. During the FIFA Club World Cup tournament, Colwill became a rock-solid defensive mainstay for the Blues. The tall defender was also rooting for this season to make this season memorable. But that is football at the end. But the bigger question has now occurred whether Chelsea management will sign a defender or not as a replacement.
Chelsea Have a Solid Defender for Next Few Years Now
English football has given birth to a lot of fantastic defenders throughout the years. For instance, legendary Chelsea captain John Terry served the country for years. Since the retirement of Terry, Chelsea found it hard to get a promising one for the future. But fans believe that the problem is gone now. Chelsea academy graduate Levi Colwill has impressed them all with his performance. Colwill was one of the purest academy graduates to shine for Chelsea in recent years. The 22-year-old stopper joined the academy back in 2019. Gradually since then, he developed his game and earned his spot in the main team under head coach Enzo Maresca. He joined Huddersfield from the U-23 Chelsea side in 2021. After the end of the loan, he got promoted to the senior team of Chelsea. But Chelsea decided to loan him again. This time, he joined Brighton. At Brighton, he began to deliver in some matches. So, Chelsea management decided to bring him back and make him a regular player. From the 2022-23 season, Levi Colwill has been a part of the core team. He is also a goalscoring defender. Having already played 75 matches for the Blues, Colwill has already registered 3 goals and 3 assists in his name. Colwill played a huge role in Chelsea’s CWC triumph. Chelsea have brought in some really good footballers in the team this year. But the club hasn’t made any necessary inclusion in the defensive zone. This sudden and unfortunate injury has no doubt hit a setback to the team.
Not Just for Levi Colwill, ACL Injuries Are Like a Curse to Every Footballer
ACL injuries during the pre-season have caused trouble to so many clubs all over the world. Even for the injured footballer, it becomes so hard to regain the top form after rehabilitation. There are so many examples of players failing to make impact in the field after sustaining an ACL or MCL injury. Spanish heavyweights Real Madrid were one of the teams who suffered the most last season for having players suffering from an ACL. Another English footballer has suffered an unfortunate ACL injury during the pre-season. During the farewell match of Son, Tottenham’s Maddison sustained a sudden ACL injury just after returning from another big injury. Football critics have pointed out that the FIFA Club World Cup tournament has played the role of the catalyst here. The players already have to feature in almost 60+ matches in a calendar year. On top of that, this CWC has seriously caused many footballers’ fatigue and ACL injuries. Manchester City’s defensive midfielder Rodri and former Liverpool coach Jurgen Klopp had raised their voices on this inhuman schedule for the footballers but both UEFA and FIFA aren’t going to change anything. To avoid these kinds of injuries, Real Madrid learnt their lesson and didn’t go for a pre-season tour after participating in the CWC.
Chelsea Won’t Sign a New Defender to Replace Colwill
Levi Colwill is set to miss football for the next 6-7 months. But Chelsea club officials have decided not to sign a new defender to replace the services of Levi Colwill. Although the club was in talks with Crystal Palace captain, Marc Guehi, but Liverpool have advanced their negotiations with the defender. Head coach Enzo Maresca has put his trust in the other defenders as he has a large squad this time. But another upset has happened after Colwill’s injury. Maresca had to withdraw Trevor Chalobah in the friendly match against AC Milan. The medical team suspect it to be an ankle injury. The Blues will hope that the injury is not serious. But, Josh Acheampong will have a much bigger role than expected this season. Just before the start of the new season, Chelsea are already suffering from injury issues.
Stay tuned for more updates.
