Ahead of the clash with Manchester United there was a bit of a shock for Chelsea fans to see, as the starting eleven and bench was announced there was no Joao Pedro in the squad at all. This was notable because it allowed Liam Delap to start with the former Ipswich man being in increasingly poor form as his debut season unfurls. With another goalless appearance for the Englishman, fans will be hoping that his Brazilian counterpart will be back sooner rather than later.
Will Joao Pedro Start for Chelsea This Week vs Brighton & Hove Albion
Latest Update Via Liam Rosenior
In a Tuesday media conference, the manager gave some injury updates on a number of players, including the striker, who was actually signed from Brighton in 2025. Estevao was mentioned as being unavailable after limping off against the Red Devils.
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On Pedro, the manager said that he would be a “late call” with no clarification available over his injury status. This isn’t an ideal sign as it means he is unlikely to start and feature for the full 90 minutes.
What This Means for Chelsea
The 19-goal man being unavailable leaves the Blues in a poor spot as he has been their most prolific goalscorer in this campaign with his nine assists making him one of the team’s best attacking outlets. Without him, there is an onus on Delap to play better, with the former Ipswich man being in poor form since his move Chelsea, having netted just twice in the 2025/26 campaign.
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Rosenior hasn’t seen his team score a Premier League goal since March 4 against Aston Villa, with things going against him already, he will be hoping to get Pedro back as soon as possible as he needs his most in-form striker if he wants to turn things around in what remains of this term.
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