Chelsea have had a subpar start to the 2025–26 season, winning just three of the seven Premier League matches they've played so far. While there are multiple reasons behind this, one of the key factors is the unavailability of several important players due to injuries, which has left Enzo Maresca with very little squad depth in many positions.
It hasn’t been long since the season kicked off, and things aren’t looking particularly good on Chelsea’s fitness front. The Blues suffered a major setback even before the campaign began when Levi Colwill sustained an ACL injury, ruling him out for a long period of time.
Liam Delap, Tosin Adarabioyo, Dario Essugo, and Romeo Lavia have also missed a significant number of matches through injuries. Additionally, Cole Palmer has been in and out of the squad lately due to a groin issue that is set to keep him sidelined for a few more weeks at least.
Now, to make matters worse, another name has been added to that list. According to the Evening Standard, Andrey Santos is dealing with a muscular injury and is not expected to return until late October or early November. That rules the Brazilian international out of this weekend’s matchup against Nottingham Forest.
Chelsea player unlikely to be fit for matchup against Nottingham Forest
Chelsea now have multiple midfielders unavailable for the Forest game, including Essugo, Palmer, and Santos. Meanwhile, Enzo Fernandez could also be sidelined after picking up a knee issue while on international duty with Argentina.
Chelsea were keen to sign Xavi Simons in the summer transfer window, but the player ultimately chose to join Tottenham Hotspur despite having a personal agreement in place with the Blues. While at the time it didn’t seem like a significant blow, the current injury crisis clearly shows just how valuable that signing could have been, especially for situations like these.
Maresca will now have to adjust his tactics accordingly to find solutions in the upcoming matchdays until the players regain fitness. He may even have to play some players out of position in order to fill the gap in midfield. This is certainly not an ideal situation to be in, but the club will have to get through it one way or another.
If both Santos and Fernandez end up missing the game against Nottingham Forest, there is a very real possibility that we will see Reece James in midfield. It is worth noting that he missed the recent international break as well.