Injury expert: Leicester to make ‘critical’ Tielemens call today after update from Belgium
Leicester City will be forced to rule out Youri Tielemans for Saturday’s clash with Chelsea unless he is involved in full training today.
So says injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Tielemens, who had not missed a minute of league action up until this point, was forced to withdraw in the 1-1 draw with Leeds on 7 November.
As quoted by Leicestershire Live after the match, Foxes boss Brendan Rodgers revealed the midfielder was struggling with pain in his calf.
The 24-year-old was forced to pull out of the Belgium squad for their final World Cup qualifiers against Estonia and Wales.
HLN, a newspaper in Tielemans’ home country, reported on 8 November that scans revealed he would likely be absent for two to three weeks.
Dinnery claims the only chance Tielemans has of playing against Chelsea on 20 November is if he is present for training today.
“There was concern from Brendan Rodgers after the Leeds match,” he told Football Insider correspondent Adam Williams.
“There was a little bit of discomfort, which is always a worry with soft tissue injuries.
“So that two or three-week indication is a sign that it is not as severe as feared. Hopefully, it won’t be too impactful for Leicester.
“He would like to be involved in the match against Chelsea. But we need to see him involved in full training on Thursday to give him a realistic chance.
“When you speak to medical departments, they’ll tell you that players will not take part in a game unless they’ve had a full session. That’s critical.
“Leicester do have options in his position as well. So if he’s held back for another week or so, so be it.”
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