Chelsea midfielder Romeo Lavia has allegedly sustained an ankle injury in a training session on Friday.
Towards the end of the summer transfer window, Chelsea were able to win the hotly-contested race to secure the signature of the Belgium international.
Lavia had impressed during his one and only season with Southampton, convincing Chelsea to pay around £53m plus add-ons for his services.
As it stands, the 19-year-old is yet to make his debut for the Blues, a consequence of playing no competitive football at Southampton in the weeks before his transfer.
Head coach Mauricio Pochettino acknowledged in press conferences before the international break that Lavia would not be available for selection until the middle of September at the earliest.
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However, it now appears that Chelsea supporters may be waiting a while longer before getting to watch another player make his debut for the club.
According to Belgian journalist Sacha Tavolieri on Twitter, Lavia may have suffered a significant ankle injury in training.
Tavolieri claims that Lavia could have sustained a muscle tear, one which would assumably lead to the player spending at least a number of weeks on the sidelines.
The development is yet to be confirmed by Chelsea, but it would come as a substantial blow to Pochettino who had hoped to integrate Lavia into his team.
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Pochettino has already had to deal with widespread injury issues since his arrival, including to another new signing in Christopher Nkunku who is out with a knee injury until at least November.
Wesley Fofana has suffered another knee injury which may keep him sidelined for the entire season, while Carney Chukwuemeka suffered a knee issue against West Ham United last month.
Reece James picked up a fresh hamstring problem soon after the opening weekend of the season, while Pochettino has been waiting on the likes of Benoit Badiashile and Armando Broja to make their respective returns from long-term absences.
Chelsea have started the season by collecting just four points from as many matches in the Premier League, losing to West Ham and Nottingham Forest respectively.
Darren Plant
