Chelsea were dealt a nightmare earlier this week after the news of Levi Colwill’s serious ACL injury, with Enzo Maresca heading into the new season minus one of his star defenders.
The Englishman, in a serious incident of bad luck, suffered his fresh injury blow at the end of his first training session back at Cobham.
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Chelsea’s best performers in the Premier League last season |
Average match rating |
|---|---|
|
Cole Palmer |
7.33 |
|
Moises Caicedo |
7.02 |
|
Enzo Fernández |
6.95 |
|
Nicolas Jackson |
6.88 |
|
Noni Madueke |
6.82 |
|
via WhoScored |
|
Colwill will now be out for the majority of next season after undergoing scans and surgery on the problem, making the potential addition of a new centre-back suddenly all the more important.
Chelsea recently put pen to paper on a deal for Jorrel Hato, who joined in a near-£38 million move from Ajax, but the club view him as more of a left-back and an alternative to Marc Cucurella.
The Blues were apparently still looking at new centre-backs even before Colwill’s injury, so it is safe to say they’ll be at least considering moving for one now as we approach the final weeks of the window.
“Chelsea are still going to be in the market for a new centre back and a new goalkeeper, even after Jorrel Hato coming in, who as we reported is seen as Marc Cucurella competition anyway,” wrote journalist Simon Phillips via his Substack late last month.
There is no guarantee that both positions are signed at this stage or even just one, and it will be dependent on outgoings for centre backs, which I have another article on later today, and opportunities. But Chelsea are still very much exploring both markets for this summer.”
However, those within the club believe Chelsea already have a solid Colwill replacement.
Chelsea coaching staff want Renato Veiga to replace Levi Colwill
According to TBR Football and journalist Graeme Bailey, that man is 22-year-old centre-back Renato Veiga.
The Portugal international has been widely expected to leave this summer after spending the second half of 2024/2025 on loan at Juventus, with Chelsea even offering Veiga out to various clubs.
However, it is now believed that members of Chelsea’s coaching staff believe that Veiga should be given the chance to replace Colwill and show his worth.
“Chelsea are gutted about Colwill, he is such a popular player and is a key performer for them, and they are fully supporting him,” said Bailey.
“However, they are assessing their options, and I am told there are some voices at Cobham who believe that with Veiga, Anselmino and Hato, they could very well cope without him in the short-term.”
Maresca sent a public message to the 22-year-old last season, amid credible reports at the time that Veiga wanted to be used as a centre-back, not at full-back where the Chelsea boss was often deploying him.
“We brought Renato from Basel and he’s played well in different positions,” said Maresca, via Ben Jacobs.
“This has allowed him to join the [Portugal] national team for the first time in his life. Even if he’s not playing in his [preferred position], he’s playing for his national team in his early 20s since joining Chelsea. We are very proud about that.”
With Colwill out injured, it appears Veiga could well be granted his wish to be used more centrally if push comes to shove.
