Roméo Lavia finally finds his place at Chelsea after a difficult start

Roméo Lavia has finally earned a start for Chelsea, after featuring in the first four Premier League matches of the season without starting. The Belgian midfielder, recently recalled to the Red Devils, played against Bukayo Saka and told the BBC he wanted “change history”.

Statistics that tell his story

Lavia's first three seasons at the Blues were marked by twelve injuries, 652 days out and 101 matches missed, against only 43 games played, with an average of 43 minutes per appearance. Counting pre‑season games, the BBC notes that he would have accumulated 518 minutes without incident if he played a full hour.

This Friday night at Brentford, Lavia could reach his fifth consecutive start, a feat shared only with Morgan Rogers, Cole Palmer and Jorrel Hato, with João Pedro injured.

A particular management under Xabi Alonso

Lavia's minutes vary: 65 against Fulham, 68 versus Brighton, 60 against Arsenal and 70 against Hull. Xabi Alonso, Chelsea's manager, often keeps him on the bench, unlike Mike Penders who played the six minutes of the victory against Leeds in the League Cup.

After a “mental block” mentioned by the manager following the match against AC Milan on August 8, Lavia had not played a full match in two years, the last being a friendly against Manchester City. He finally returned to a full game on May 13, 2023 in the Premier League.

In the context of Enzo Fernandez's unrecouped departure, Moisés Caicedo's injury in the 68ᵗʰ minute against Brighton and Reece James's fragility, Lavia assumes a senior role. He ranks second among Londoners for duels won (70.6 % versus 73.3 % for Hato) and first for recoveries with fifteen this season.

“Taking responsibility is part of my game,” Lavia told the BBC. “I love it, it’s a privilege and I’m living a dream.” He added that his goal against Brighton was “a moment when I felt free, as a reward for all my work.”