Chelsea cannot catch a break! £58m summer-signing Romeo Lavia suffers ‘muscle tear’ as Blues injury crisis deepens

Lavia has not made a first-team appearance for the Blues since completing a £58 million ($50m) move from Southampton as he builds up his match fitness following a disrupted summer. And he may have to wait some time for his Chelsea debut, with journalist Sacha Tavolieri reporting that the midfielder has suffered an untimely injury in training.

Mauricio Pochettino's latest fitness update on Lavia came ahead of Chelsea's Premier League win over Luton Town. On that occasion, he said: "He needs a few weeks to be ready to be involved with the team. He is working to try and catch his teammates. For Romeo we need to wait a few weeks."

That timeline would have given Lavia a chance of featuring after the international break, but it now appears that the Blues will be without the midfielder for an extended period of time after his injury was assessed on Friday, according to Evening Standard.

Manager Mauricio Pochettino will be cursing his luck, with Benoit Badiashile, Christopher Nkunku, Wesley Fofana and Carney Chukwuemeka among the other big names currently sidelined. The Blues did at least receive a boost from Reece James recently, with the club captain posting a positive recovery update on social media.

Chelsea are yet to confirm the injury through their official channels, but it seems unlikely that Lavia will be available for his side's trip to Bournemouth in the Premier League on 17 September. It remains to be seen how many games he will miss on top of that.