Belgium head coach Domenico Tedesco has explained why Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia was not in the matchday squad for the 1-0 defeat to Israel on Sunday evening.

The 20-year-old had already missed the loss to Italy last week and, asked about the player’s absence, Tedesco replied:

“I think Romeo Lavia has a hamstring problem. It was bothering him this morning and we didn’t want to risk him.”

It does raise question marks about Lavia’s fitness heading into this weekend’s match against Leicester City.

Lavia had played down the seriousness of the injury

Speaking in an interview with the Belgian media before their two Nations League fixtures, Lavia downplayed the issue that forced him off during the draw against Arsenal.

However, it appears that Lavia’s problem is more serious than he anticipated. It is hoped that it isn’t a recurrence of the injury that kept him on the sidelines for more than a month at the start of the season.

The Belgian started the 2-0 defeat to Manchester City on the opening day and came on as a substitute in the subsequent Conference League qualifier against Servette but he didn’t feature again until the win over Brighton in late September. It remains to be seen how long he could be out for this time.

Latest Chelsea injury news

In addition to Lavia, there are four other players who are officially on the treatment table, (the likes of Levi Colwill, Cole Palmer and Filip Jorgensen have withdrawn from international duty but there is no information on any reported injuries)

Wesley Fofana is managing a knee injury, while Malo Gusto has an ankle problem. Jadon Sancho suffered a knock prior to the Arsenal fixture, while Omar Kellyman is undergoing rehabilitation for a hamstring issue.

Find out who is in Chelsea’s first-team squad for the 2024/2025 season here