After 33 appearances in 30 months, £58m Chelsea star still has a long road back to the top | OneFootball

Romeo Lavia returned for Chelsea against Wrexham on Saturday after a long spell out and looked pretty rusty.

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Chelsea’s win in the FA Cup fifth round at the weekend was more than just another important step forward in a cup competition. The game also saw first team appearances for two injury plagued midfielders.

But while Dario Essugo stepped in for his first Chelsea appearance since July in the second half and looked like he hadn’t been away, Romeo Lavia struggled a little more.

Lavia faces another long road back – but has potential key role at the end of it

Dom Smiths’ piece for the Evening Standard today is all about Lavia and how it might take a while for him to get back to his best. The Belgian is now up to 33 appearances in 30 months at Stamford Bridge, his last start coming back in early November.

The good news is that, even with Essugo also on the scene, Chelsea are desperate for a competent, ball circulating midfielder to take the pressure off Andrey Santos, Moises Caicedo and Enzo Fernandez.

We all know Lavia has got the ability, it’s just a question of keeping him fit enough to reach his best level again. Liam Rosenior defended his player’s showing after the game, and there will be a long process of helping him get up to speed without risking further issues.

In other news…

Wayne Rooney was at the Chelsea – Wrexham FA Cup game and he’s made some huge claims about what he made of it.

Chelsea have been linked with transfer interest in Sunderland goalkeeper Robin Roefs, who is having a great season.

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