Estevao a doubt for Chelsea ahead of Arsenal game, Marc Cucurella out
By
SABC Sport
23rd February 2026
Chelsea hope to have Estevao and Reece James fit as they face a challenging task returning to winning ways in the Premier League against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium this weekend.
Manager Liam Rosenior will be without key defender Wesley Fofana, who serves a one-match suspension following his red card for two bookable offences in the 1-1 draw with Burnley.
Estevao remains a doubt after sustaining a hamstring injury in training, which ruled him out of the Burnley squad and sparked concern among supporters.
"Unfortunately yesterday in the training session, he felt awareness in his hamstring," Rosenior said before the Burnley game.
"At the moment we are scanning it to make sure it's nothing too serious but he's unavailable for today's game and we will see from there."
Left-back Marc Cucurella has also been sidelined since suffering a hamstring injury against Leeds, missing the subsequent win over Hull and the Burnley draw. Rosenior indicated on Thursday that Cucurella could be out for up to a month.
"I can't give an exact timeframe on Marc," Rosenior said in the pre-match press conference.
"He suffered a hamstring injury just before half-time in the Leeds game. It's a real shame because he's an outstanding player, and one of the best left-backs in the world.
"It's a shame not to have Marc available but we have Jorrel [Hato] and we have Malo [Gusto] who can play on that side, so we have really good players that can cover.
"Of course, the sooner Marc gets back, the better."
On a brighter note, Romeo Lavia is back in contention after featuring for the U21s and being named on the bench against Burnley.
Captain Reece James, making his first Premier League appearance since January's 3-2 win over West Ham, was substituted just before stoppage time as Rosenior looked to reinforce Chelsea's defence.
The manager confirmed that James is expected to be fit for the Arsenal clash, with Josh Acheampong prepared as a potential replacement if needed.
"Reece, it was just, honestly, he's so important to us as the captain, as the world-class player that he is," said Rosenior.
"Any sign of fatigue with him, I want to get him off the pitch. I need him for [the] Arsenal [game]. He should be absolutely fine."
