Chelsea defender Levi Colwill faces a long spell on the sidelines after undergoing surgery to repair a torn ACL suffered in training at Cobham on Monday.
Colwill, 22, suffered the injury towards the end of Chelsea’s first training session after re-convening at Cobham ahead of the new Premier League season, and was notably absent from Wednesday’s trophy celebration with several thousand supporters at Stamford Bridge.
Maresca hinted that the injury was serious with his comments about Colwill in a press conference to preview Chelsea’s first pre-season friendly against Bayer Leverkusen.
“We had a problem the last two days with Levi Colwill,” Chelsea’s head coach said. “We don’t know how long he’s going to be out. It was the first session on Monday and just in the last minutes of the session, he felt something and we need to wait.
“We know each other from last year and we know how important he has been. I spoke with Levi yesterday and I told him that if we achieve what we achieved last year, it’s also because of him.”
A club statement read: “Defender Levi Colwill has today undergone successful surgery to an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
“The 22-year-old had reported back to Cobham for pre-season at the start of this week, before unfortunately sustaining the injury in training. Medical assessments confirmed surgery would be the required course of action.
“Levi will now begin his recovery and be supported by the club’s medical department at Cobham during his rehabilitation phase.”
Colwill made 43 appearances for Chelsea across all competitions in 2024-25, and was a regular starter at the heart of a defence which secured a fourth-place finish in the Premier League and won the inaugural expanded FIFA Club World Cup in the United States this summer.
(Photo: Luke Hales/Getty Images)
Aug 8, 2025Connections: Sports Edition
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