Chelsea coach Enzo Maresca confirms exact timeframe for Wesley Fofana’s spell on sidelines after major hamstring injury

Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca has dismissed suggestions that Wesley Fofana is closing in on a return for Chelsea. He confirmed that the medical staff had ruled Fofana out for 3 to 4 months.

Speaking to the media ahead of the Blues' FA Cup match against Morecambe FC, Maresca said that Fofana needed time to recover from his hamstring issue. He said (via football.london):

"We speak the same language, we communicate with each other in English and French. The 12-16 weeks the club mentioned is the situation. Wes is thinking he can recover sooner than that. We are all happy if he could but we will see. There is no problem. I told you what the medical staff said to me."

Wesley Fofana picked up a hamstring issue in the Blues' 3-0 win over Aston Villa in December 2024 and has been out since.

What Chelsea manager Enzo Maresca said earlier about Wesley Fofana's injury

Enzo Maresca spoke about Wesley Fofana's injury earlier this season, saying the defender could be out for the season. The Chelsea manager acknowledged that the injury was worse than previously expected and said (via GOAL):

“Unfortunately, Wes (Fofana) will be out for a very long time. He (Fofana) could be out for the season. We don’t know exactly if it will be for the entire season, he could be out for part of the season. Every time you ask me about Wes, I have said many times that I am in love with Wes. Wes is that kind of defender who can give you the chance to press and be aggressive, to leave him one-v-one with Ollie Watkins on the pitch.

"It was the first update (after the Aston Villa game), the first information we had. On making the test we realised it (Fofana’s injury) was worse than what we thought at the beginning.”

He added:

“Yes (it is a bad tear). It is his hamstring and unfortunately, we are going to lose him for a while. I don’t think this injury can be compared with the rest. This one is muscular and I don’t think previously he had any muscular problem."

However, Fofana later claimed on Instagram that he would be back within a month and was not going to miss the rest of the season.