Romeo Lavia has appeared in just one league game since turning down Liverpool to join Chelsea in the summer.
Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino thinks Romeo Lavia is still a long way from returning to first-team training and will not be ready for the League Cup final against Liverpool later this month.
The £53 million summer transfer from Southampton has only played 32 Premier League minutes. He did not join the squad until Christmas Eve against Wolves, when he came off the bench to help the team defeat Crystal Palace three days later at Stamford Bridge.
When asked if he may return before the crucial League Final, the Chelsea manager responded no. He told London World, “No. He isn’t training with the team. He is still recovering. But, no, that’s impossible. Still not on the pitch.
The Blues produced their greatest performance of the season at Villa Park, and boss Pochettino hopes it will be the turning point for his young squad. Nicolas Jackson, Malo Gusto, Enzo Fernandez, and Moises Caicedo all had standout performances.
Pochettino has been eager to remind out that his team is young, but he also confessed that he expects the Villa performance to set the standard going ahead, saying: “Yes. I believe we had some fantastic performances in the past, but were inconsistent after that. But perhaps it will serve as a beginning point for us to become more consistent and demonstrate this type of performance more frequently.”
The Argentinian was also quick to point out that the players were focused on maintaining their performance, which gives him faith that they are on the right track.
