Chelsea's 7-man injury list in full as Liam Rosenior faces Champions League issue

Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior is hoping his squad's injury list will ease after the international break, with his side preparing to face Port Vale in the FA Cup before a crucial clash against Manchester City

Chelsea boss Liam Rosenior will be hoping to welcome back several players after the international break unscathed, with six currently on the injury list. Following this month's break, the Premier League does not resume until the weekend of April 11-12, although Chelsea are in FA Cup action before then.

They face Port Vale in the quarter-finals of the competition on Saturday, April 4 (5:15pm) at Stamford Bridge. After that they'll face Manchester City on their return to top-flight action on April 12.

The extra week between the FA Cup tie and the league fixture should give injured players more time to step up their recovery ahead of the tough clash with Pep Guardiola's side. Chelsea, winless in their last two league games, will be looking to bounce back after Liverpool overtook them in the table to move into fifth place.

The Blues remain firmly in the race for Champions League qualification, though rivals Liverpool are also pushing despite their underwhelming league campaign.

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Getting key players back fit will be a significant boost for Rosenior and his squad as they gear up for the decisive final weeks of the season and their pursuit of European football.

Here, football.london breaks down all of the sidelined Chelsea players at present, as well as their potential return dates...

Cole Palmer

Injury: Groin.

Palmer is edging closer to full fitness, according to England manager Thomas Tuchel. He played 34 minutes in England's 1-1 friendly draw with Uruguay on Friday.

"We’ve seen some encouraging data recently," the German boss said.

"I saw him live against Arsenal and for the first time in a long time, I had the feeling his stride was back to the original lengths."

The 23-year-old's season has been overshadowed by a groin injury.

Potential return date: vs Man City (H) - April 12.

Levi Colwill

Injury: Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL).

The Blues academy graduate suffered an ACL during pre-season training in early August 2025. "With an ACL, he's hitting all the benchmarks he needs to," said Rosenior.

"He’s still looking at a good while yet. Hopefully [he can play this season]."

Potential return date: May 2026.

Trevoh Chalobah

Injury: Ankle.

Rosenior also confirmed that Trevoh Chalobah will be sidelined for around six weeks after suffering an ankle injury against Paris Saint‑Germain in the Champions League.

"Fortunately it's nowhere near as serious as we first feared. It's still a serious injury," Rosenior said. "We're looking at a period of about six weeks, which is a better period than we first thought."

Potential return date: vs Nottingham Forest (H) - May 4.

Filip Jorgensen

Injury: Groin.

The goalkeeper underwent minor groin surgery earlier this month after sustaining an injury during the nightmare against PSG.

"He had his scan and needed a minor operation," Rosenior confirmed. That’s a matter of weeks."

Potential return date: vs Brighton (A) - April 26.

Jamie Gittens

Injury: Hamstring.

Gittens suffered a hamstring tear in the win over West Ham in late January. Rosenior revealed that he was very close to making the squad for Chelsea's home defeat to Newcastle United on March 14, but had to be left out after suffering a setback in his recovery.

"Jamie was due back on the bench, and he felt his hamstring late after training yesterday, so we're just checking up on him," the Chelsea boss said.

Potential return date: vs Man United (H) - April 18.

Reece James

Injury: Hamstring.

The Blues captain picked up the injury during the 1-0 defeat to Newcastle, despite completing the full 90 minutes. As he works his way back to full fitness, Rosenior has confirmed that the issue is not as serious as first feared.

"Reece, we’re going to look at more after the international break," he said. "It’s not serious but there is something in his hamstring."

Potential return date: April/May 2026.

Mykhailo Mudryk

Reason: Suspension.

The Ukraine international was charged by the Football Association with violenting its anti-doping rules after failing a drugs test.

The FA statement read: "Mykhailo Mudryk has been charged with Anti-Doping Rule Violations alleging the presence and/or use of a prohibited substance, in terms of Regulations 3 and 4 of The FA's Anti-Doping Regulations. As this is an ongoing case, we are not in a position to comment further at this time."

Potential return date: Unknown.