Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca offered encouraging news on the fitness of Estevao and Liam Delap, despite both players being set to miss Saturday’s trip to Newcastle United.
Earlier this month, Delap sustained a shoulder injury in the clash with Bournemouth, with early reports indicating the striker might not return until late January.
Estevao, meanwhile, was a surprise omission earlier in the week when Chelsea travelled to face Cardiff City in the EFL Cup quarter-finals.
Following the 3–1 win in South Wales, Maresca confirmed that the Brazil international would not be available for the upcoming Premier League encounter against Newcastle.
However, optimism soon followed: Maresca explained during Friday’s press conference that both players are expected to return before the end of the calendar year.
Boost
Discussing the club’s current injury list, the Italian reassured reporters at his pre-match press conference, saying:
‘We are good, yeah. The ones that we left out for Cardiff, they are okay,’
‘We have probably Liam Delap and Estevao Willian, probably both available for next game against Aston Villa.
‘That is good news. And then Romeo (Lavia) is still out. Levi (Colwill) is still out.’
When questioned about whether Delap’s recovery had moved along quicker than anticipated, Maresca responded by admitting some surprise, explaining:
‘Yeah. We said since his injury that we don’t know exactly; we didn’t know exactly for how long, but he’s progressing very well.’
Chelsea ended a four-game winless run in all competitions with a 2-0 win at home to Everton last weekend. They’ll be looking to put more pressure on their rivals in the top three when they travel to St James’ Park to face Newcastle United on Saturday.
Securing all three points would move the side in fourth to within five points of table-toppers Arsenal, who meet Everton later the same day, and close the gap to just two points behind third-placed Aston Villa.
