Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana has been working back out on the grass at Cobham as he enters the next phase of his injury rehabilitation.
Both the club and the player shared pictures on Thursday evening of him in boots and training gear as he worked outside at their Surrey base.
Chelsea showed snaps of Fofana back out at Cobham and being embraced by manager Mauricio Pochettino, along with the caption: "Back on the grass."
Meanwhile, Fofana's own pictures of his return to the grass were followed by the simple message: "This feeling."
This feeling 🙏🏽⚽️ #CFC #PourEux pic.twitter.com/J2QRb6z1BU
— Wesley Fofana (@Wesley_Fofana3) November 23, 2023
Fofana stepping up his rehabilitation will be a welcome sight for Pochettino, with the centre-back having been sidelined since undergoing anterior cruciate ligament reconstruction surgery in July after a serious knee injury sustained before the pre-season tour of the United States.
It was the latest in a long line of unfortunate injuries for Fofana, who joined Chelsea from Leicester in a deal worth up to £75million in the summer of 2022.
He missed several months of last season and the World Cup in Qatar with a knee injury, while at Leicester he suffered a broken leg during pre-season that ruled him out for most of the 2021/22 campaign.
Back on the grass.🏃♂️ pic.twitter.com/p00a04cMBU
— Chelsea FC (@ChelseaFC) November 23, 2023
Though Fofana is now back out on the grass at Cobham, a potential return for Chelsea presumably remains a long way off as he carefully works his way through his rehabilitation.
However, there were previously suggestions that he could miss the entire season, so there must surely now be hope that he can play again in 2023/24.
The resurgent Blues also remain without the likes of Ben Chilwell, Trevoh Chalobah and Carney Chukwuemeka through injury at present, though Christopher Nkunku could make his long-awaited debut against Newcastle as the Premier League returns on Saturday after joining in with team training this week following the international break.
Pochettino will also hope that fellow summer signing Romeo Lavia can make his own debut soon, while defenders Levi Colwill and Malo Gusto have also trained this week after respective knocks.
The Chelsea boss will no doubt provide a further update on his injury situation when he addresses the media on Friday afternoon ahead of a high-profile trip to St James' Park this weekend.
