Chelsea are set to be handed a triple injury boost for today’s FA Cup final clash with Manchester City.
Pedro Neto and Alejandro Garnacho both returned to training this week ahead of the Wembley showpiece after each missing the last two games and are expected to be available for selection this afternoon.
First-choice goalkeeper Robert Sanchez should also be able to start after missing last weekend’s 1-1 draw against Liverpool in the Premier League due to the cut to the head he sustained in the home defeat by Nottingham Forest a fortnight ago.
That would see deputy Filip Jorgensen drop to the bench after he came on against Forest and stepped up to start in Sanchez’s absence at Anfield.
It is likely that Chelsea’s interim head coach Calum McFarlane will start one of Neto or Garnacho at Wembley as they are the club’s only fit and available senior wingers now they are back in contention.
That could see a 4-2-3-1 formation reinstated against City, unless McFarlane wishes to stick with the 3-4-3 system that helped his injury-hit side grab a spirited point on Merseyside.
After Reece James made his long-awaited return from a hamstring injury off the bench against Liverpool, the Chelsea captain could now make his first start in two months.
Levi Colwill had missed the entirety of the season so far due to an anterior cruciate ligament injury sustained last summer, before making a substitute appearance against Forest and then starting at Liverpool, where he impressed.
He could get the nod again today in central defence alongside Trevoh Chalobah, with James and Marc Cucurella at full-back and Romeo Lavia paired with Moises Caicedo in midfield, behind an attacking trio of Cole Palmer, Enzo Fernandez and Neto. Joao Pedro will lead the line.
Estevao remains out with a hamstring injury that will see him miss the World Cup with Brazil, while fellow wingers Jamie Gittens and Jesse Derry are also still sidelined.
Predicted Chelsea XI (4-2-3-1): Sanchez; James, Chalobah, Colwill, Cucurella; Lavia, Caicedo; Palmer, Fernandez, Neto; Joao Pedro
Injured: Estevao, Gittens, Derry
Time and date: 3pm BST on Saturday May 16, 2026
Venue: Wembley Stadium
How to watch: BBC and TNT Sports
