Chelsea star withdraws from national team squad to focus on treatment protocol

Chelsea star Wesley Fofana has withdrawn from France's squad for the upcoming international break to focus on getting back to his best after a long-term injury last season.

Last July, Fofana ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament prior to the start of the Blues' pre-season tour of the United States. The 23-year-old missed the entirety of the 2023-24 season owing to his serious injury.

However, the former Leicester City defender has opened the 2024-25 campaign on a positive note. He has started three straight league games for Chelsea so far, helping them win one contest in the process.

Now, according to French journalist Fabrice Hawkins, Fofana has decided to not take part in France's UEFA Nations League clashes against Italy and Belgium this month. Sevilla centre-back Loic Bade has been called up as a replacement for the Blues defender.

Fofana, whose current Chelsea contract is set to expire in June 2029, will remain available to his club and follow a treatment protocol in the next two weeks. He is reportedly not keen to exert himself on the pitch after just recently returning to first-team action at club level.

The Saint-Etienne youth product has scored two goals in 23 games across competitions for Chelsea since arriving for £75 million in 2022.

Chelsea great Frank Lampard pinpoints one potential issue that could affect former club

Earlier this Sunday (September 1), the west London outfit were held to a 1-1 Premier League draw against Crystal Palace at Stamford Bridge. After Nicolas Jackson's 25th-minute opener, Eberechi Eze restored parity for the visitors in the 53rd minute of the match.

Speaking on BBC Match of the Day 2, Blues legend Frank Lampard claimed that the inexperience of his former club's current squad could prove to be a problem. He said (h/t Metro):

"Inconsistency will be there, young players bring that. If you look at moments in the game where Chelsea are on top, maybe they aren't clinical enough and then you can always feel the game can swing on them. You do wonder if that bit of experience through the spine of the team isn't there and you'll have to wait for that but there's certainly a lot of talent in there."

Enzo Maresca's side, who finished sixth in the Premier League last season, are currently 11th in the 2024-25 league standings with four points from three games. They will next lock horns with Bournemouth in an away league clash on Saturday (September 14).