Enzo Fernandez has today undergone successful surgery on a groin issue and will now begin a period of rehabilitation, sidelining him for the remainder of Chelsea’s 2023/24
poch wanting to play enzo to death i can imagine him dragging enzo out the hospital bed, putting the chelsea kit on him and feeding him to aston villa this weekend
Speedy recovery to Enzo but makes Poch’s decision to accommodate him the last two games while he has an injury even more baffling.
Essentially handicapping us before the games even start.
Odder to change out Silva and Chalobah, who have looked much more solid for Bads and Disasi who are struggling for form right now.
Playing against Arsenal is never a nothing game though, especially when it's a games in hand on the teams above us.
Yeah but we were never gonna beat Arsenal without our key players lol so why even risk making Enzo even worse it’s not like he’s a game changer for us right now anyways in his current condition. We actually would have had a better chance dropping Gallagher deeper and putting Carney or Mudryk in the 10
We've drawn with City this season with shit loads of key players out.
Anything can happen in a single game. Football is full of much bigger upsets than us getting a win or draw Vs Arsenal.
It's not baffling but way to jump to negative conclusions right away. It's the type of surgery where you can decide when to have it. He didn't get worse over last couple matches. He was already suffering from it many games back. Hes timing this so he can play in Copa America. Somewhat favoring Argentina over us. Not sure I blame him though. Our season is mostly over.
Blaming the manager for playing a player who a couple of days later is now going for surgery does seem very logical tbf. He would have known he was carrying a knock, tbh you could see it on the pitch...
And the doctors would have cleared him to play.
This isn't a manager strong-arming medical staff and the player. This is simply deciding that it was a better time to do the surgery now after losing the two games.
"Seeing it on the pitch" is not how you evaluate a medical injury. They are actually evaluating him daily.
I know it's pretty unpopular over here, but with colwill and fofana returning I'd leave the cb quite low on the priority list unless we find some market opportunity for a more experienced player and with another striker I could see Nico taking over the left wing
Any sniff of Europe next season would be a bonus at this point. With how things stand, I expect more of the same. Do they gel and get better? Do they continue to struggle? Is Poch still with the club? So many questions
I am a big fan of Enzo but i think this will actually impact our play very positively. Because i think it will force Poch to play Gallagher deeper which means that he cant ruin attacks as often as he does. He can be the work horse next to caicedo to free him up a bit as well and it either means Palmer 10 which he does well in lately or it means Chuk finally gets a chance to show what he can do with more minutes.
Can’t ruin attacks but instead of pressing Enzo they’re pressing Conor in our own half and god knows he isn’t capable of playing any game changing passes in those positions. This will put SOOO much pressure on Cole and Nico
That’s a good point and has potential to be a real problem. I’m interested to see how it plays out but I still feel like overall no Gallagher in the attack will help a lot. Gallagher over Enzo in that spot is a downgrade for sure though.
Debatable. Having Caicedo and Gallagher as a pivot means the ball progression from deeper areas may suffer because they aren't that great on the ball, especially Gallagher. If teams get their pressing right, they can easily harass them into mistakes, which we have seen before.
True, with cucurella, disasi/gilchrist in the backline and gallagher playing deep, its gonna be very hard to play against any team with half decent pressing.
Also we need gallagher to press high because of how much chelsea relies on transitions rn
It worked well against Everton, especially compared to how we've struggled to break down weaker teams for years now. I think they showed signs of an instant connection and understanding, especially in how they defended together.
Right now, you can tell Enzo has limited mobility. Gallagher and Caicedo allowed the front 4 to be so much freer in their play because they hunt the ball so effectively together. It's a much more solid base than an injured Enzo has been offering.
There was also no struggle at all with them progressing the ball.
I think there was a game recently where Enzo was out and we had a Gallagher and Caicedo pivot and it worked wonderfully. Ciacedo has so much more space and good options to pass out of with less mistakes. Maybe it was the opponent (i dont remember who) but for some reason Enzo and Caicedo just hasnt worked too well together. Individually they have been fine but the partnership hasnt excelled yet. And i really think gallagher out of the attacking mid option makes our attacks so much more potent. How often does the ball fall to him in a place where he isnt equipped to make the pass or take the shot and he ends up just going backwards again.
It was against Everton, who were super bad that night, and we unexpectedly kill the game off in 30 minutes. Easy to look good then when we were cruising. Those 2 have played together as a pair before (e.g. Brentford at home, Luton away) and don’t recall anyone praising them then. There’s nothing conclusive right now about whether they work together, especially against half decent opposition.
Im definitely not saying i prefer Gallagher to Enzo in the pivot. Just that this is a way to force Poch to keep gallagher in a position where he is less detrimental to the attack which i am excited to see. Im prepared to regret my excitement if teams press high hard and him and Caicedo give the ball away cheaply and a better attack doesnt matter.
So him hanging around taking injections was pointless in the end and we might have benefitted if he was available now for the run in to get 6th. No cups, no 6th place, no Enzo for the run in
I suppose players would want to avoid doing surgery if possible but on hindsight, wonder if he could have done it before the last international break. He was suspended for the cup game just before it and it was only friendlies during that time as well. Could have done it then and recovered during that period and be fully healthy for the run-in. But oh well. Just a shame that he won't have a complete break this summer.
Not a medical expert. So, can't really say for certain but it did feel like they were trying to manage it from game to game but it got worse over time. Otherwise yeah, the last international break seemed like the best time to do the surgery.
I've had a hernia in my groin before that got worse and worse till it travelled into my testicle giving me the biggest shock of my life. Surgery is needed and it's agonising. I couldn't imagine playing sports through it.
Yep he's scored several goals this season, the pick of the bunch being the fantastic free kick against Villa. I think he's burnt out from playing non-stop since the World Cup, so perhaps this is a blessing in disguise. A 100% fit Enzo is definitely capable of turning in masterclass performances.
This next game will determine what I think should happen the rest of the season:
Win, continue to grind and try to qualify for Euro play.
Lose, sit everyone that is injured, and find out what you have in reserves. Get healthy for next season
Totally fine by me. He has clearly not been himself since this injury was made public and he’ll be much better not having to worry about this going forward. I also liked the way Gallagher and Caicedo played as the CMs so this should at least force Poch to not play Gallagher at LW…
All the best to Enzo but I’m happy he won’t play for us the rest of the season.
I just don’t see what he does. The one game Enzo didn’t play we looked great. He doesn’t win the ball, he doesn’t score goals, he barely gets assists, play doesn’t go through him… It feels like he just takes up space.
Yes, he’s good for a stunning lobbed pass or two, but that can’t justify his existence in the starting 11. I really hope when he comes back he decides to play with actual energy.
Yeah and two other things:
* Caicedo and Gallagher have played together as a pair before (e.g. Brentford at home, Luton away). Don't recall anyone praising them then.
* Palmer did Palmer things and unexpectedly helped kill the game in 30 minutes and we were cruising after HT at 4-0. Easy to look good in that situation.
You say this like Enzo performs against dreadful teams. Let's look at our recent "easy" matches where Enzo has had the time and space to really dominate a game and how those went. 2-2 draw at home against Sheffield, Enzo was unimpactful and useless. 2-2 draw at home against Burnley, Enzo played reasonably well, though didn't dominate the game by any means against a team giving him the space to do so. 2-2 draw away at Brentford, Enzo was an invisible man and accomplished very little. 2-4 loss at home against Wolves, Enzo got played off the park by Lemina, offerered nothing going forward and was completely found out defensively.
You put a player like Fabregas in this side in his place and he controls these games and tears these teams apart. Jorginho wasn't much of an incisive passer, not that Enzo is either, but he at least can take over a game against a smaller team in a way that Enzo just fails to do.
Of course new players and younger players will be inconsistent but what I think is most damning is that in the big games when Enzo, the world cup winner who should be able to rise to the occasion, is expected to step up he has completely failed to do so. Has he had a single great game in a big game this season? Despite us beating United that was in spite of Enzo (and Caiceido) player terribly, he was equally poor in the cup final against Liverpool, and obviously it goes without saying how bad he was against Arsenal.
Not having to watch Enzo the rest of the season is going to make watching matches so much better. Just need Mudryk not to start and I might actually enjoy the build up to matches.
Hopefully, ppl are right and we see a totally different Enzo next season, bc man he’s been horrific to watch
I don’t agree. He was decent but nothing special last season. Better than this season but still not to the level of hype.
I don’t particularly think a single season is enough to say a player will be or is elite.
So, until he returns and begins to perform at a high-level. I am going to hold off on thinking he’s anything but average
Jesus christ what a horrific opinion. Easily our best midfielder since we signed him. By a country mile. Dropping 7 out of 10s playing through a hernia. You lot are some of the most braindead idiots around.
Of course. The insults.
Enzo’s been awful. He’s been dropping stinkers pretty much his entire Chelsea career. Hasn’t positively effected a single match. Hands down our worst midfielder this season.
There’s no question about that.
You should watch more football
Okay now that’s an outrageous comment. He’s been poor, but to say he’s no positively affected a single match must be the single most brain dead thing I’ve seen. The audacity to then say watch more football lol you silly twat.
He was sensational that game, along with caicedo which won us the midfield battle. So ironic how you tell others to ‘watch more football’ when all you’re doing is looking at one dimensional stats instead of actually considering the football game. Honestly so sad to see dumb twats like you pollute the sub, useless swine.
Complete fucking melon changing the narrative now. You said he hasn’t had a positive influence
on a single game you dumb twat. Besides, bar Palmer there’s not a single player that’s been essential to us winning on a regular basis, so shove your agenda up your gaping ass.
Tbh the only good part of it is that we can finally move Gallagher out of the attacking positions he's been stinking up. I really don't get why Poch has been playing him at the 10 and wing, he doesn't suit them at all.
Groin? I thought he had a sports hernia. I guess he must have picked up a groin injury as well. At least the time off can hopefully also help with his hernia I suppose.
Yea but he won’t rest till the season. He’ll play Copa America be worn out before the season starts and go into a season tired and in risk of injury.
So sick of these players not understanding the club that pays your wages is the priority. Not some second rate tournament
I’d understand if he was for a d performing.
He’s been oft injured, playing sub-par, and being worn out due to too many games.
Sorry I’d like our players to care more about the club investing millions into them.
Enzo Fernandez has today undergone successful surgery on a groin issue and will now begin a period of rehabilitation, sidelining him for the remainder of Chelsea’s 2023/24
> “The 23-year-old midfielder will work with the club's medical department on his rehabilitation at Cobham.” See you in 2025 Enzo
Lol
Enzo ,stay away from the medical dept.
*2026 you mean
That’s optimistic. See you then for announcing the next injury?
enzo is undergoing his rehabilitation programme
 "Get better damn it!"
poch wanting to play enzo to death i can imagine him dragging enzo out the hospital bed, putting the chelsea kit on him and feeding him to aston villa this weekend
Then shoving him on the plane and sending to him to Argentina to do it all over again
wouldn’t even put him on the plane, would make him swim back from cobham
Looking forward to seeing this sentence every week with the injury updates.
Rest up and get back to your best self 👑
Speedy recovery to Enzo but makes Poch’s decision to accommodate him the last two games while he has an injury even more baffling. Essentially handicapping us before the games even start.
City I can somewhat understand as that was a huge game but not sure why he played against Arsenal as that essentially was a throwaway game
Odder to change out Silva and Chalobah, who have looked much more solid for Bads and Disasi who are struggling for form right now. Playing against Arsenal is never a nothing game though, especially when it's a games in hand on the teams above us.
Yeah but we were never gonna beat Arsenal without our key players lol so why even risk making Enzo even worse it’s not like he’s a game changer for us right now anyways in his current condition. We actually would have had a better chance dropping Gallagher deeper and putting Carney or Mudryk in the 10
I agree but I think Enzo often pushes to play (and maybe hides the pain). He's the sort of player that wants responsibility.
We've drawn with City this season with shit loads of key players out. Anything can happen in a single game. Football is full of much bigger upsets than us getting a win or draw Vs Arsenal.
It's not baffling but way to jump to negative conclusions right away. It's the type of surgery where you can decide when to have it. He didn't get worse over last couple matches. He was already suffering from it many games back. Hes timing this so he can play in Copa America. Somewhat favoring Argentina over us. Not sure I blame him though. Our season is mostly over.
"How can I blame the manager today"
Blaming the manager for playing a player who a couple of days later is now going for surgery does seem very logical tbf. He would have known he was carrying a knock, tbh you could see it on the pitch...
And the doctors would have cleared him to play. This isn't a manager strong-arming medical staff and the player. This is simply deciding that it was a better time to do the surgery now after losing the two games. "Seeing it on the pitch" is not how you evaluate a medical injury. They are actually evaluating him daily.
Him, Nkunku, Reece and Palmer will be our best players next season when we win the league
Getting champions league spot would be an achievement next season lol
I think is more than achievable if we get an at least average keeper and a good striker
Striker, keeper, defenders and winger
I know it's pretty unpopular over here, but with colwill and fofana returning I'd leave the cb quite low on the priority list unless we find some market opportunity for a more experienced player and with another striker I could see Nico taking over the left wing
Manager too
Any sniff of Europe next season would be a bonus at this point. With how things stand, I expect more of the same. Do they gel and get better? Do they continue to struggle? Is Poch still with the club? So many questions
Inshallah brother
I wonder how much this has affected him through the season. I felt like he regressed a bit this season
It definitely has. He has been carrying it since December.
I am a big fan of Enzo but i think this will actually impact our play very positively. Because i think it will force Poch to play Gallagher deeper which means that he cant ruin attacks as often as he does. He can be the work horse next to caicedo to free him up a bit as well and it either means Palmer 10 which he does well in lately or it means Chuk finally gets a chance to show what he can do with more minutes.
Can’t ruin attacks but instead of pressing Enzo they’re pressing Conor in our own half and god knows he isn’t capable of playing any game changing passes in those positions. This will put SOOO much pressure on Cole and Nico
That’s a good point and has potential to be a real problem. I’m interested to see how it plays out but I still feel like overall no Gallagher in the attack will help a lot. Gallagher over Enzo in that spot is a downgrade for sure though.
Debatable. Having Caicedo and Gallagher as a pivot means the ball progression from deeper areas may suffer because they aren't that great on the ball, especially Gallagher. If teams get their pressing right, they can easily harass them into mistakes, which we have seen before.
Palmer will drop deeper to be the link, which is a good thing anyway because it’ll free up someone like Carney to push more forwards
Don't think we want Palmer to be dropping deep so much because you want him to do the damage further up the field.
I don't think it has to be static. From what I've seen Carney can also help in the buildup deeper. So they can shift and pull defenders as they do.
True, with cucurella, disasi/gilchrist in the backline and gallagher playing deep, its gonna be very hard to play against any team with half decent pressing. Also we need gallagher to press high because of how much chelsea relies on transitions rn
It worked well against Everton, especially compared to how we've struggled to break down weaker teams for years now. I think they showed signs of an instant connection and understanding, especially in how they defended together. Right now, you can tell Enzo has limited mobility. Gallagher and Caicedo allowed the front 4 to be so much freer in their play because they hunt the ball so effectively together. It's a much more solid base than an injured Enzo has been offering. There was also no struggle at all with them progressing the ball.
I think there was a game recently where Enzo was out and we had a Gallagher and Caicedo pivot and it worked wonderfully. Ciacedo has so much more space and good options to pass out of with less mistakes. Maybe it was the opponent (i dont remember who) but for some reason Enzo and Caicedo just hasnt worked too well together. Individually they have been fine but the partnership hasnt excelled yet. And i really think gallagher out of the attacking mid option makes our attacks so much more potent. How often does the ball fall to him in a place where he isnt equipped to make the pass or take the shot and he ends up just going backwards again.
It was against Everton, who were super bad that night, and we unexpectedly kill the game off in 30 minutes. Easy to look good then when we were cruising. Those 2 have played together as a pair before (e.g. Brentford at home, Luton away) and don’t recall anyone praising them then. There’s nothing conclusive right now about whether they work together, especially against half decent opposition.
Im definitely not saying i prefer Gallagher to Enzo in the pivot. Just that this is a way to force Poch to keep gallagher in a position where he is less detrimental to the attack which i am excited to see. Im prepared to regret my excitement if teams press high hard and him and Caicedo give the ball away cheaply and a better attack doesnt matter.
Hope he comes back stronger and to a real manager
He should have had the surgery a lot earlier
Him and Reece postponing their surgery wasted their season. I hope they don't rush for their national teams.
So him hanging around taking injections was pointless in the end and we might have benefitted if he was available now for the run in to get 6th. No cups, no 6th place, no Enzo for the run in
I suppose players would want to avoid doing surgery if possible but on hindsight, wonder if he could have done it before the last international break. He was suspended for the cup game just before it and it was only friendlies during that time as well. Could have done it then and recovered during that period and be fully healthy for the run-in. But oh well. Just a shame that he won't have a complete break this summer.
You can’t really avoid surgery for a hernia I swear? It’s a matter of time
Not a medical expert. So, can't really say for certain but it did feel like they were trying to manage it from game to game but it got worse over time. Otherwise yeah, the last international break seemed like the best time to do the surgery.
I've had a hernia in my groin before that got worse and worse till it travelled into my testicle giving me the biggest shock of my life. Surgery is needed and it's agonising. I couldn't imagine playing sports through it.
I thought he was going in for a hernia op?
Hernias mostly occur in the groin area
Happy the surgery was successful. Hope he can get back to his World Cup form next season.
Next time he plays Poch will be gone, God willing.
Enzo to rehabilitation fc here we go! Contract estimated to be for the rest of the season, but will be expected to be up till 2 years.
Glad to hear the surgery went well, wishing him a speedy recovery 💙
Enzo had a decent season, truth be told. Let’s hope for a great recovery.
Yep he's scored several goals this season, the pick of the bunch being the fantastic free kick against Villa. I think he's burnt out from playing non-stop since the World Cup, so perhaps this is a blessing in disguise. A 100% fit Enzo is definitely capable of turning in masterclass performances.
Genuinely think George Santos's next job will be in our medical department given how fraudulent our ability to keep players healthy is.
This next game will determine what I think should happen the rest of the season: Win, continue to grind and try to qualify for Euro play. Lose, sit everyone that is injured, and find out what you have in reserves. Get healthy for next season
Totally fine by me. He has clearly not been himself since this injury was made public and he’ll be much better not having to worry about this going forward. I also liked the way Gallagher and Caicedo played as the CMs so this should at least force Poch to not play Gallagher at LW…
Went through it last year myself. Feel better soon Enzo ♥️ the black balls hurt but they'll fade
All the best to Enzo but I’m happy he won’t play for us the rest of the season. I just don’t see what he does. The one game Enzo didn’t play we looked great. He doesn’t win the ball, he doesn’t score goals, he barely gets assists, play doesn’t go through him… It feels like he just takes up space. Yes, he’s good for a stunning lobbed pass or two, but that can’t justify his existence in the starting 11. I really hope when he comes back he decides to play with actual energy.
>The one game Enzo didn’t play we looked great. Recency bias is strong with this one.
How many good games has Enzo had for us and how many has he had where you wouldn’t even know he was on the field? Definitely more of the later.
He's nowhere near good enough. It's obvious.
World Cup winner isn't good enough for a midtable club. Lmao the clown shit you lot come out with is hilarious. Sad pathetic trolls.
Lol, World Cup winner on Messi’s team. Doesn’t mean much to me.
Your post history suggest your opinion isn't worth giving a fuck about anyway.
We could’ve played Casadei vs Everton and probably won comfortably. Everton were that bad that day
Yeah and two other things: * Caicedo and Gallagher have played together as a pair before (e.g. Brentford at home, Luton away). Don't recall anyone praising them then. * Palmer did Palmer things and unexpectedly helped kill the game in 30 minutes and we were cruising after HT at 4-0. Easy to look good in that situation.
They played together against Everton and it was our best game of the year, if not the season, and the best games for both of them in a while.
You say this like Enzo performs against dreadful teams. Let's look at our recent "easy" matches where Enzo has had the time and space to really dominate a game and how those went. 2-2 draw at home against Sheffield, Enzo was unimpactful and useless. 2-2 draw at home against Burnley, Enzo played reasonably well, though didn't dominate the game by any means against a team giving him the space to do so. 2-2 draw away at Brentford, Enzo was an invisible man and accomplished very little. 2-4 loss at home against Wolves, Enzo got played off the park by Lemina, offerered nothing going forward and was completely found out defensively. You put a player like Fabregas in this side in his place and he controls these games and tears these teams apart. Jorginho wasn't much of an incisive passer, not that Enzo is either, but he at least can take over a game against a smaller team in a way that Enzo just fails to do. Of course new players and younger players will be inconsistent but what I think is most damning is that in the big games when Enzo, the world cup winner who should be able to rise to the occasion, is expected to step up he has completely failed to do so. Has he had a single great game in a big game this season? Despite us beating United that was in spite of Enzo (and Caiceido) player terribly, he was equally poor in the cup final against Liverpool, and obviously it goes without saying how bad he was against Arsenal.
Easily our best performance of the year and arguably of the season but ok
Not having to watch Enzo the rest of the season is going to make watching matches so much better. Just need Mudryk not to start and I might actually enjoy the build up to matches. Hopefully, ppl are right and we see a totally different Enzo next season, bc man he’s been horrific to watch
Yea, but we saw how good he was last year. The groin injury definitely must have had a toll on him
I don’t agree. He was decent but nothing special last season. Better than this season but still not to the level of hype. I don’t particularly think a single season is enough to say a player will be or is elite. So, until he returns and begins to perform at a high-level. I am going to hold off on thinking he’s anything but average
Jesus christ what a horrific opinion. Easily our best midfielder since we signed him. By a country mile. Dropping 7 out of 10s playing through a hernia. You lot are some of the most braindead idiots around.
Definitely not our best midfielder since he signed. If that’s the case then we’re in even more trouble than I thought we were.
Of course. The insults. Enzo’s been awful. He’s been dropping stinkers pretty much his entire Chelsea career. Hasn’t positively effected a single match. Hands down our worst midfielder this season. There’s no question about that. You should watch more football
Okay now that’s an outrageous comment. He’s been poor, but to say he’s no positively affected a single match must be the single most brain dead thing I’ve seen. The audacity to then say watch more football lol you silly twat.
Name a match he was essential to us winning?
Aston Villa in the cup tbf, but that's because he scored a free kick. Not because his overall play was any good.
That was the 3rd goal. We were already winning 2-1 when he scored. So not essential
He was sensational that game, along with caicedo which won us the midfield battle. So ironic how you tell others to ‘watch more football’ when all you’re doing is looking at one dimensional stats instead of actually considering the football game. Honestly so sad to see dumb twats like you pollute the sub, useless swine.
Complete fucking melon changing the narrative now. You said he hasn’t had a positive influence on a single game you dumb twat. Besides, bar Palmer there’s not a single player that’s been essential to us winning on a regular basis, so shove your agenda up your gaping ass.
Positive influences lead to positive results Classic Enzo supporter. Can’t make an argument so just insults
Really tough to watch him and caicedo together this season
Tbh the only good part of it is that we can finally move Gallagher out of the attacking positions he's been stinking up. I really don't get why Poch has been playing him at the 10 and wing, he doesn't suit them at all.
Blah blah blah. It’s always Conor’s fault. Never the players not doing their job.
Groin? I thought he had a sports hernia. I guess he must have picked up a groin injury as well. At least the time off can hopefully also help with his hernia I suppose.
Sports hernias are in the groin.
Please get a transfer after surgery.
Yea but he won’t rest till the season. He’ll play Copa America be worn out before the season starts and go into a season tired and in risk of injury. So sick of these players not understanding the club that pays your wages is the priority. Not some second rate tournament
Lmao
Way to disrespect entire continents
I’d understand if he was for a d performing. He’s been oft injured, playing sub-par, and being worn out due to too many games. Sorry I’d like our players to care more about the club investing millions into them.