Wesley Fofana has endured a slow start to his Chelsea career after picking up a knee injury in October but following outings against Tottenham and Southampton, he could be set to start
It was in October that Wesley Fofana was the coolest man in the box as the ball scrambled between Chelsea and AC Milan bodies. The Frenchman looked to tear away towards the corner flag before quickly being swarmed by his teammates. It had been a tumultuous start to Fofana’s career that combined solid outings, a disappointing error and a chance of manager.
On that night, his first Champions League match at Stamford Bridge, jubilation reigned. That goal felt like it was a moment that would bring life into Fofana’s Chelsea career, even if it was not among his primary duties.
At that stage, Chelsea’s plan was for success in the present and the future, with Fofana a player that suited that philosophy down to the ground. Unfortunately, the fractious nature of his first weeks at the club ensured both club and player have been forced to wait to see what he can achieve representing the west London side.
“He is that kind of profile that we identified very early to replace Toni [Rudiger] and Andreas [Christensen],” explained the German coach. “We are very happy that we stayed patient, super happy that Todd [Boehly] was relentless on it and never gave up. We managed to fulfil this transfer.
“Wesley is young, he’s fast, he’s very, very strong in set-pieces, defending and attacking. He was one of the very early targets to replace our guys that left the club.”
Chilwell quickly added his voice to those praising his teammate following Fofana’s debut too, adding: “Massive kudos to Wes. He’s only just come in, he’s trained with us twice. Then he starts today, his first game at Stamford Bridge, it was a brilliant performance by him and many more to come. To come in at such a young age and gel so quickly into the group is massive.”
While he didn’t show it in every outing, this was a player present to make an impact. Everyone was made to wait instead.
“I’ve played two games now and it was great to be back on the pitch,” said Fofana. “I tried to help the team to the maximum and now I just need to push hard to stay fit for the rest of the season. To come back after four months out is a great feeling and I’ve very happy.”
His first task will to be stay fit, but he will have to push hard to be the leader Chelsea require at the back in Silva’s absence. Fofana’s season starts now.