'I suffered a lot' - Enzo Fernandez confirms Argentina decision amid persistent injury | OneFootball

Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez has confirmed that he will not take part in Argentina's training camp for the November international break to focus on nursing his knee problem.

Previously, Argentina's football governing body AFA announced their plan to hold a training camp in Spain for the upcoming international break, during which the national team will also travel to Angola for a friendly match.

This would already be a relatively easy schedule if Fernandez were to be called up.

Fernandez, however, has made the decision not to take part in Argentina's November plans, which, from Chelsea's perspective, is arguably the best-case scenario.

"I will not be available with Argentina," the midfielder told ESPN's SportsCenter about his international break plan.

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"I was just talking to the medical team because I had a problem with my knee for the last 4 months.

"I came with a bone edema that got worse in the last weeks and months because we played a lot of games.

"The coaching staff and I have decided to rest together because I don't have time to rest because there are a lot of games.

"I think the most important thing is coming to the end of the season and I think it's good to make this decision together. Always respecting the doctors and everything.

"I think it was the best decision to rest these two weeks for my knee. In the last week I suffered a lot of pain, and everyone here knows it.

"These two weeks, I recovered as much as I could. I will recover as much as I can when I am 100% back to training and playing with my team."

Bear in mind that during the October international break, Fernandez withdrew from the Argentina squad due to a knee inflammation.

Fortunately, it was nothing serious, and he only missed one game for Chelsea after the early withdrawal.

However, from Fernandez's admission, it is clear that the knee problem is still bothering him, so it makes sense for him to focus more on his treatment over a training camp and a friendly match.

Chelsea head coach Enzo Maresca has recently admitted that Fernandez is one of the few Chelsea players who could not train every day, alongside Joao Pedro and Moises Caicedo, because of fitness issues.