Chelsea are preparing to face Pafos FC in the Champions League league phase on Wednesday night. The Blues can take a huge step toward playoff qualification by avoiding defeat at Stamford Bridge.
New manager Liam Rosenior is looking to keep his perfect record intact since replacing Enzo Maresca at the start of the month. The 41-year-old will know how much is at stake for Pafos FC, though. The Cypriots may not pose much of a threat on paper, but an upset could see them handed an outside chance of staying in the competition.
Undoubtedly, all the pressure will be on the Blues, though. Rosenior will have three full days between playing Pafos FC and Crystal Palace in the Premier League on Sunday, so he is likely to name his strongest possible 11.
Despite this, though, one of the first names on the former Strasbourg manager's team sheet looks set to miss out.
Liam Rosenior confirms Enzo Fernandez a doubt for Champions League tie against Pafos FC
Enzo Fernandez was excellent during Chelsea's 2-0 win over Brentford last weekend. The midfielder put in a dominant display and would have easily started in the Champions League midweek.
However, Rosenior, who spoke to the media, as quoted by Chelsea's official website before Wednesday's match, confirmed the Argentina international is unwell and is now a doubt to play against Juan Carlos Carcedo's Pafos FC.
"Enzo Fernandez was ill yesterday – he missed training – and there were signs of it during the game against Brentford, which goes to show the type of performance that he put in.
[...] Enzo trained today, but none of those lads [who've been ill] are 100 per cent, it's a bad illness. We'll make a decision on Enzo tomorrow and what he looks like in terms of starting or from the bench."
Featuring in all of the Blues' Champions League league phase games, failure to recover in time will see Fernandez miss out on European action for the first this season.
Although Chelsea will still be expected to win convincingly, Fernandez's potential absence would be a huge blow, and should the 25-year-old miss out, he won't be the only one.
Tosin Adarabioyo definitely ruled out after suffering Brentford injury
Centre-back Tosin Adarabioyo will definitely not make Wednesday night's game against Pafos FC.
During his press conference, Rosenior confirmed the former Fulham defender suffered an injury to his hamstring against Brentford.
The injury, which saw the 28-year-old substituted off after 58 minutes, has proven too problematic to make tomorrow's Champions League fixture.
Unable to confirm an exact time frame for his return, the Chelsea manager admitted he doesn't know how long Adarabioyo will be sidelined for.