Wesley Fofana responds to Enzo Maresca limiting his game time at Chelsea

Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana admitted that despite his desire to play more regularly, he is on board with Enzo Maresca's decision to limit his involvement after a long injury spell.

It is safe to say that Fofana has been very unlucky with injuries throughout his Chelsea career so far.

The 24-year-old had several knee injuries early in his Chelsea stint, including the cruciate ligament tear that forced him out of the entire 2023/24 season.

He was then out of contention for the majority of the second half of the 2024/25 season due to a hamstring injury, and he eventually had to undergo surgery for it.

The former Leicester City star made his return at the start of this season, but only made four appearances before having to watch the team from the sideline again.

Despite Maresca's cautious workload management, Fofana unfortunately suffered a concussion that kept him out of the team for about a month in September and October.

After such a poor injury record, Fofana said he is thankful for Maresca's careful approach to his minutes.

"In football, it’s hard to take your time because there is a game every three days, but he (Maresca) protects me and he pushes me in a good way," the France international told Chelsea's in-house media team.

"I had hamstring surgery, and you need to be careful when you come back.

"He doesn’t take risks with me because he wants, step by step, for me to be able to play every three days.

"The target is to play every game; we need to carefully progress step by step towards that.

"Also, he protects me because of the type of player I am: aggressive, fast, not scared to have duels on the pitch.

"I understand it, and it’s what I feel as well. I agree with it. The most important (thing) is to continue to progress."

Obviously, Maresca's approach comes with its own risks, too.

The Italian head coach has faced criticism for chopping and changing his centre-back pairings.

That said, largely thanks to this, Fofana has seen improvement in his fitness.

"The best feeling is when you can be on the pitch and help the team win games," the centre-back explained.

"I feel very good now. I’m working hard to stay fit, to stay strong, and to continue to help the team win."

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