France have confirmed that Chelsea defender Wesley Fofana will not take part in the upcoming international break despite receiving his first call-up in almost 18 months. The 23-year-old, who played 90 minutes against Crystal Palace on Sunday, will instead stay at Cobham.

Having missed all of last season with an injury picked up before even the 2023 tour of America under Mauricio Pochettino, Fofana has made a strong start to life under Enzo Maresca at Stamford Bridge. His withdrawal from Didier Deschemps' side is not thought to be fitness-related though.

There is immediate fear for many Blues fans when Fofana isn't used in squads due to his past problems, but it has been a case of so far so good for the former Leicester City man this summer. He has shrugged off past worries to form a promising partnership at the heart of defence with Levi Colwill.

France explain that during the two weeks off, Fofana will 'take advantage of the international break to follow a treatment protocol, linked to the injuries which kept him away from the pitch for a long time last season.' He has been replaced by Sevilla's Loic Balde.

New signing Omari Kellyman has not been as lucky this time around. football.london understands that the teenager's hamstring is expected to keep him out for at least two months.

Kellyman signed for the club for PS19million from Aston Villa but has been unable to make an impact on the senior squad. He joined with a knock that saw him left out of Maresca's pre-season group before going on to train with the Under-21s.

Late last month he made his first appearance for the academy, coming on as a second-half substitute in a 2-1 defeat to Tottenham in Premier League 2 (PL2). Kellyman then got an hour one week later against Everton before being taken off.

Playing against RB Leipzig in a Premier League International Cup match he then made an even bigger impact, scoring and getting sent off. He has picked up a new injury though that will see him out until at least November.

Writing on Instagram, Kellyman addressed the unfortunate news. He wrote: "Gutted to have suffered another long hamstring injury [broken heart emoji] Part of the game but I'll be back stronger [bicep emoji]".

Chelsea will be hopeful that both Fofana and Kellyman can play a big role across the club this season. They will also be tracking Malo Gusto and Enzo Fernandez after both players suffered injury scares against Palace.

Gusto was forced off in the second half, holding his hamstring as he left the field. The Frenchman, who suffered from niggles throughout last term, was also spotted with an ice pack after the game as well.

As for Fernandez, he was left on the floor at the end of the game. He appeared to be clutching his jaw after a collision late on. Chelsea will be optimistic that there is little to worry about for him but Gusto is a bigger worry.

"With Malo, we will see now what happens," Maresca said afterwards, addressing the substitution. "It looks like a muscle problem, so we will see."