Chelsea given triple Nottingham Forest injury boost as Enzo Maresca handed £55m green light

Chelsea return to Premier League action on Saturday afternoon as the Blues look to make it three wins on the bounce, with Nottingham Forest standing in their way at the City Ground. Enzo Maresca's side defeated Benfica and Liverpool by the odd goal prior to the international break and are looking to build some momentum ahead of a hectic fixture schedule.

Between now and the next international break - the final one of 2025 - Chelsea have seven matches in all competitions. For a bit more context: that is seven games in the space of just 21 days. It averages out at a match every three days, so Maresca's squad is going to be tested to the absolute maximum over the next three weeks.

The Chelsea head coach will be boosted by the fact some of his players have shone for their respective countries during the recently-concluded international break. Also, Maresca might want to thank some of the international managers, namely Lee Carsley (England Under-21s), Didier Deschamps (France) and Luis de la Fuente (Spain), for resting some of his key players and not risking potential injuries.

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Josh Acheampong played 78 minutes in England U21s' 4-0 victory versus Moldova last week but was given a rest in the win over Andorra more recently. The 19-year-old shone for Chelsea in their win against Liverpool before the break but limped off in the second half at Stamford Bridge.

Malo Gusto, meanwhile, got 90 minutes for France in their comfortable win against Azerbaijan last week but was handed a rest for the draw with Iceland. Marc Cucurella, too, played the entirety of Spain's first game but was an unused substitute in the victory over Bulgaria.

Enzo Fernandez played the majority of the match against Venezuela for Argentina but then withdrew from his national team's camp at the weekend due to a knee injury. We await to hear the full extent of the problem but Maresca should tell us more during his pre-match press conference on Friday.

Jamie Gittens, signed for £55million in the summer, and academy graduate Tyrique George both shone for England U21s in wins against Moldova and Andorra. Gittens scored the opening goal of the game versus Moldova and then provided the assist for George, whose strike was enough to beat Andorra a few days later at Pride Park.

Estevao Willian was Chelsea's only representative for Brazil, with Andrey Santos and Joao Pedro both not called up this time around. Estevao shone for Carlo Ancelotti's side in their 5-0 win against South Korea, scoring a double, but started on the bench in the draw with Japan. The 18-year-old came on for the final 17 minutes on Tuesday afternoon with the score level but could not inspire a late winner.

Meanwhile, Pedro Neto got just over an hour in both of Portugal's games over the break. The 25-year-old winger started in the win against Ireland and the draw with Hungary, playing 61 and 62 minutes, respectively.