Enzo Fernandez will miss Chelsea’s home match against Manchester City on Sunday, extending his spell out of the side after a two-match internal ban imposed last week. The midfielder, who joined Chelsea from Benfica in 2023, is still not ready to return despite apologising for comments he made during the international break.
The ban was handed down after an interview in which Fernandez expressed admiration for Madrid, a remark that revived talk about his future because he has repeatedly been linked with a move to Real Madrid. Javier Pastore said this week that Chelsea and Fernandez had “cleared the air” after he sat out last Saturday’s 7-0 FA Cup victory over Port Vale, but the club decided to stick with the original punishment.
Liam Rosenior said he had “three or four” conversations with Fernandez and said the player had apologised to him and to the club. “It was a serious meeting about something very serious,” Rosenior said. “I'm not questioning Enzo's character or who he is as a person. We've made a sanction, we made a decision – I made a decision – and what I want for Enzo is for him to come here and have an outstanding career.”
Rosenior said Fernandez would not be involved against Pep Guardiola’s side, but he sounded optimistic about a return for Manchester United’s visit to Stamford Bridge on 18 April. “He won't play on Sunday, but hopefully after that he'll be a massive part of the group moving forward,” he said. “There are still a few hurdles to be overcome that I won't go into, but at the same time I want every player really focused on a huge run.”
Chelsea go into the game sixth in the Premier League and one point behind Liverpool in the fifth and final Champions League qualification place, making every dropped point costly. Reece James, Trevoh Chalobah and Levi Colwill also remain unavailable, leaving Chelsea with more than one absence to manage as the schedule tightens and the club tries to steady the fallout from a dispute that has now reached the edge of the pitch.
