Former Chelsea defender Frank Leboeuf has made a striking comparison regarding Moises Caicedo, suggesting that the midfielder's absence due to injury is akin to losing iconic players such as John Terry or Gianfranco Zola.
The Ecuadorian midfielder has only featured for a mere 14 minutes this season, plagued by calf issues that have sidelined him for the start of the campaign. After making a brief return against his former club Brighton on August 30, Caicedo unfortunately lasted just 14 minutes before suffering a setback. In his absence, Chelsea have managed to collect only one point from a possible nine, leaving them languishing in tenth place in the Premier League.
Leboeuf firmly believes that Caicedo is crucial to the team, even more so than star midfielder Enzo Fernandez, emphasizing the dire need for his return:
It’s tough to draw any conclusions in midfield because you don’t have Caicedo. For me, Caicedo was the key man, surpassing Enzo Fernandez, and when you’re missing your main player — it’s like when you didn’t have John Terry, Frank Lampard, or Didier Drogba, or for us, when we were without Zola, it was a completely different team. Chelsea are struggling right now because they’re not strong enough in the midfield, that’s for sure.
Caicedo is expected to make his comeback on Saturday against Bournemouth after he missed recent international matches as a precaution.
