Chelsea manager Graham Potter has been handed a significant injury boost after three players with fitness concerns were spotted in training ahead of their clash against Aston Villa on Saturday. Reece James and Wesley Fofana were both pictured taking part in Tuesday's session, while the club confirmed Raheem Sterling was also back on the grass having faced a spell on the sidelines.
After scoring a crucial goal in the Champions League win against Borussia Dortmund, Sterling missed Chelsea's subsequent two matches having picked up a fresh fitness concern. He was also left out of Gareth Southgate's England squad for the international break as a precaution, allowing the Blues attacker sufficient time to recover for the return of club football this weekend.
The club have now confirmed the 28-year-old has recovered well during the minor break, and could be in Potter's selection plans at Stamford Bridge. The time away from the pitch has also allowed Sterling to try out a new hairstyle, as he was pictured sporting a fresh trim at Cobham.
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Seemingly joining Sterling in returning to training is Reece James. The right-back was withdrawn from the England squad to take on Ukraine on Sunday evening due to an 'ongoing issue' with a minor hamstring injury, sparking concern among the Blues faithful.
The 23-year-old defender has struggled with injury problems all season long, but fortunately, this withdrawal looked to be more of a precaution as he was spotted during Tuesday's session. Wesley Fofana completes the trio of potential injury boosts for Potter, having just found some impressive form prior to the international break.
After Chelsea's last match, Potter revealed Fofana had been taken off against Everton due to fatigue, while he was also "feeling his hamstring", with many suspecting the defender had picked up another injury. The Frenchman was spotted in the dugout at Stamford Bridge with an ice pack on his right thigh, leaving some supporters to fear the worst.
As such, he remained in England in an effort to make a return against Aston Villa. The 22-year-old did send a cryptic social media message to seemingly give an update on his condition, perhaps suggesting the situation wasn't as concerning as initially feared, as now looks to be the case.
However, there appears to be no update on the fitness of Kai Havertz, after the forward returned from international duty with Germany. In a statement on social media, Germany confirmed Havertz was set to return to Chelsea through illness which has since been labelled as a flu infection, but it is hopeful he can recover in the week and will be available for Saturday's match.
Similarly, Mason Mount was another forced out of international action, with no news as to whether this Saturday could come too soon for the 24-year-old. Elsewhere, N'Golo Kante has been given a further two weeks to increase his fitness levels after making his matchday squad return against Everton.
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