Is Moises Caicedo fit to play for Chelsea this weekend? £115million signing hoping to face Aston Villa after poor start

Moises Caicedo will be itching to kickstart his faltering start to his Chelsea career by returning to action against Aston Villa this weekend.

The former Brighton midfielder has struggled to live up to his £115million British record price tag since arriving at Stamford Bridge.

Caicedo gave away a penalty on his debut in a 3-1 defeat against West Ham, but he looked to have steadied the ship in a 3-0 win over Luton.

But then he gave the ball away in the build-up to Anthony Elanga’s winner in a 1-0 defeat to Nottingham Forest, a game he was also hauled off in as Chelsea chased an equaliser.

Caicedo missed the chance to atone for his error in Sunday’s stalemate at Bournemouth after picking up a knock on international duty with Ecuador.

Speaking ahead of the Vitality Stadium outing, which ended in a 0-0 draw, Mauricio Pochettino said: “Caicedo arrived back with a knock in his knee.

“We need to assess him in the next few days but he wasn’t available for today, that’s why he not here”.

Is Caicedo fit to play for Chelsea this weekend?

Chelsea are set to receive a boost with Caicedo in line to face Aston Villa on Sunday.

The 21-year-old played 90 minutes in both of Ecuador’s games over the recent break as they beat Uruguay 2-1 before losing 1-0 to Argentina.

His late arrival back from South America meant Caicedo was always in line for a rest against Bournemouth anyway.

However, he returned to England with a strapped knee after feeling some discomfort and hasn’t been pictured in training this week.

Fortunately, Caicedo is optimistic he will be ready to battle Villa as Chelsea look to recover from taking just five points from five games.

Despite fans believing Caicedo’s return would be a boost, talkSPORT pundit Andy Jacobs hailed Lesley Ugochukwu’s performance in his absence.

Jacob told talkSPORT: “Lesley [Ugochukwu], who played yesterday in midfield, played pretty well. He had a good game.

“He did exactly what Caicedo would do. He did exactly what any good defensive midfielder would do. He won a few tackles and laid it off.

“You don’t pay £115million for somebody who does that job. They must be mad.”

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By: Joe Brophy
Title: Is Moises Caicedo fit to play for Chelsea this weekend? £115million signing hoping to face Aston Villa after poor start
Sourced From: talksport.com/football/1574351/moises-caicedo-injury-fitness-chelsea-aston-villa/
Published Date: Fri, 22 Sep 2023 09:13:25 +0000