1 hour ago, acaeus said:

Rumor, so take it with a grain of salt.

I've just heard on a Brazilian sports show it's a full rupture and chelsea suggested immediate corrective surgery. Player and staff decided to go to Brazil and try to recover in time for the WC.

I'm not sure I like the take as a Brazil fan. I certainly do not like what I hear, if true, as a chelsea fan.

Another rumor: his return was too soon... dunno if player pushed for it (for the WC).

I am not sure you can rehab a detached hammy

I hope this is not a career altering injury. Because once you get this extreme hamstring, it become chronic.

5 minutes ago, Bob stark said:

I am not sure you can rehab a detached hammy

yeah contradictory rumors to some degree.
He can only be in Brazil attempting a rehab if it's a partial tear, which does not match grade 4.

Regardless, just hope he thinks about his career as these injures can be very tricky to deal with. He's too young to be thinking about anything else.

That's his career done.

2 hours ago, Bob stark said:

I am not sure you can rehab a detached hammy

Surgery to re-attach then rehabilitation.

1 hour ago, Deino said:

That's his career done.

Nah, hamstring injuries are rarely career-ending for footballers. These days it is barely a concern for running sports.

Career-altering, for sure. He'll need to get surgery done and then commence a period of rest, recovery and rehabilitation. He'll also need to make a very big choice as to how seriously he is willing to take his future strength training, nutrition and rest/recovery protocols, because managing inflammation for the rest of his career is key to preventing reoccurring injuries.

Grade 4 is a complete detachment which is medically more severe, but can have a better long term prognosis than a grade 2 or 3. With the latter there is a huge temptation to get back too soon. The formation of scar tissue means the hamstrings are never quite as strong or as stable as they were, meaning everything connected - the thigh, back, knee and ankle - are at risk of chronic injury too. Modern medicine means a grade 4 can be cleanly surgically repaired and then it's just down to how seriously the athlete takes their rehab.

I just don't think that this club is the right environment for that right now. Firstly, there are no leaders and mentors. Secondly, the toxicity surrounding the club will amplify any doubts he has on his return. Every touch, every failed dribble will be scrutinised, not just by the media but by our own fans. He will be written off as a crock and a waste by 22. It's exactly what happened to Dembele at Barcelona. Saka was in a similar situation and only Arsenal's success has spared him from the glare of the spotlight.

6 minutes ago, acaeus said:

yeah contradictory rumors to some degree.
He can only be in Brazil attempting a rehab if it's a partial tear, which does not match grade 4.

Regardless, just hope he thinks about his career as these injures can be very tricky to deal with. He's too young to be thinking about anything else.

4 minutes ago, SydneyChelsea said:

Surgery to re-attach then rehabilitation.

Nah, hamstring injuries are rarely career-ending for footballers. These days it is barely a concern for running sports.

Career-altering, for sure. He'll need to get surgery done and then commence a period of rest, recovery and rehabilitation. He'll also need to make a very big choice as to how seriously he is willing to take his future strength training, nutrition and rest/recovery protocols, because managing inflammation for the rest of his career is key to preventing reoccurring injuries.

Grade 4 is a complete detachment which is medically more severe, but can have a better long term prognosis than a grade 2 or 3. With the latter there is a huge temptation to get back too soon. The formation of scar tissue means the hamstrings are never quite as strong or as stable as they were, meaning everything connected - the thigh, back, knee and ankle - are at risk of chronic injury too. Modern medicine means a grade 4 can be cleanly surgically repaired and then it's just down to how seriously the athlete takes their rehab.

I just don't think that this club is the right environment for that right now. Firstly, there are no leaders and mentors. Secondly, the toxicity surrounding the club will amplify any doubts he has on his return. Every touch, every failed dribble will be scrutinised, not just by the media but by our own fans. He will be written off as a crock and a waste by 22. It's exactly what happened to Dembele at Barcelona. Saka was in a similar situation and only Arsenal's success has spared him from the glare of the spotlight.

I have seen this story again and again, that is I wrote many times here.

My hope this won't be a big career altering injury.

1 hour ago, SydneyChelsea said:

Surgery to re-attach then rehabilitation.

Nah, hamstring injuries are rarely career-ending for footballers. These days it is barely a concern for running sports.

Career-altering, for sure. He'll need to get surgery done and then commence a period of rest, recovery and rehabilitation. He'll also need to make a very big choice as to how seriously he is willing to take his future strength training, nutrition and rest/recovery protocols, because managing inflammation for the rest of his career is key to preventing reoccurring injuries.

Grade 4 is a complete detachment which is medically more severe, but can have a better long term prognosis than a grade 2 or 3. With the latter there is a huge temptation to get back too soon. The formation of scar tissue means the hamstrings are never quite as strong or as stable as they were, meaning everything connected - the thigh, back, knee and ankle - are at risk of chronic injury too. Modern medicine means a grade 4 can be cleanly surgically repaired and then it's just down to how seriously the athlete takes their rehab.

I just don't think that this club is the right environment for that right now. Firstly, there are no leaders and mentors. Secondly, the toxicity surrounding the club will amplify any doubts he has on his return. Every touch, every failed dribble will be scrutinised, not just by the media but by our own fans. He will be written off as a crock and a waste by 22. It's exactly what happened to Dembele at Barcelona. Saka was in a similar situation and only Arsenal's success has spared him from the glare of the spotlight.

1 hour ago, SydneyChelsea said:

Surgery to re-attach then rehabilitation.

Nah, hamstring injuries are rarely career-ending for footballers. These days it is barely a concern for running sports.

Career-altering, for sure. He'll need to get surgery done and then commence a period of rest, recovery and rehabilitation. He'll also need to make a very big choice as to how seriously he is willing to take his future strength training, nutrition and rest/recovery protocols, because managing inflammation for the rest of his career is key to preventing reoccurring injuries.

Grade 4 is a complete detachment which is medically more severe, but can have a better long term prognosis than a grade 2 or 3. With the latter there is a huge temptation to get back too soon. The formation of scar tissue means the hamstrings are never quite as strong or as stable as they were, meaning everything connected - the thigh, back, knee and ankle - are at risk of chronic injury too. Modern medicine means a grade 4 can be cleanly surgically repaired and then it's just down to how seriously the athlete takes their rehab.

I just don't think that this club is the right environment for that right now. Firstly, there are no leaders and mentors. Secondly, the toxicity surrounding the club will amplify any doubts he has on his return. Every touch, every failed dribble will be scrutinised, not just by the media but by our own fans. He will be written off as a crock and a waste by 22. It's exactly what happened to Dembele at Barcelona. Saka was in a similar situation and only Arsenal's success has spared him from the glare of the spotlight.

You're right, but idk if Estevao is going to be as careful as that given his style of play depends on speed and he's 18 chasing a World Cup dream

57 minutes ago, Deino said:

You're right, but idk if Estevao is going to be as careful as that given his style of play depends on speed and he's 18 chasing a World Cup dream

I'm not even thinking this short term, I'm talking about his 20s. Will he be another Neymar or Torres, or will he knuckle down and be a Dembele or Robben? The situation is even worse with Lamine Yamal and there are already serious doubts he has the attitude required to have a long career.

This kind of injury is unlikely to affect his speed if he does the work and makes the attitude changes required, but my question remains - who will guide him? Certainly no one in the current setup, and as you point out, Brazil will want him to favour the NTs interests over Chelsea.

Edited April 23Apr 23 by SydneyChelsea

1 hour ago, SydneyChelsea said:

I'm not even thinking this short term, I'm talking about his 20s. Will he be another Neymar or Torres, or will he knuckle down and be a Dembele or Robben? The situation is even worse with Lamine Yamal and there are already serious doubts he has the attitude required to have a long career.

This kind of injury is unlikely to affect his speed if he does the work and makes the attitude changes required, but my question remains - who will guide him? Certainly no one in the current setup, and as you point out, Brazil will want him to favour the NTs interests over Chelsea.

That's true too! It took Dembele and Robben years and a proper coach to manage their playing times to get over niggling issues. Torres lost all his speed.

It's not a big problem treatment-wise but like you said, proper management requires Estevao to either get a personal sports rehab guy or both club and country rehab specialists to properly look after him. Else he'd become another Saka with multiple niggling injuries that continually sap his speed.

Torres was still fast, he just lost that explosiveness to bypass players with ease. That was the knock on effect towards his confidence.

Least we have Quenda coming in.

Gutted the kid's going to miss the World Cup but he's young and there will be others.

5 hours ago, Scott said:

Gutted the kid's going to miss the World Cup but he's young and there will be others.

More kids or more cups?

12 hours ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Torres was still fast, he just lost that explosiveness to bypass players with ease. That was the knock on effect towards his confidence.

Least we have Quenda coming in.

That was the weirdest thing about it for me. Completely lost his quickness and acceleration, but if he did hit top speed he was still one of the quicker players in the squad. With most knee injuries etc we see players lose their overall speed, rarely their quickness.

He was rushed back by both club and country, and he had another major groin injury after the WC. Carragher said something interesting recently where he said that many of the players and coaches spoke in hushed tones in training after the WC, because he did not seem as sharp. That was before the second groin injury. Then although he destroyed us in October that year with two goals out of nowhere and in a game Liverpool had no right to win, Carragher pointed out that while both goals were great finishes, they were taken from positions that pre-injury, he would have simply just blown by the defender and scored an easy finish instead.

That's exactly the scenario we need to avoid with Estevao, rushing him back too soon or putting pressure on him to return and perform.

So Blue co medical have decided not to make Estevao available to McFarlane, no surprise there.

On 23/04/2026 at 14:07, Scott said:

Gutted the kid's going to miss the World Cup but he's young and there will be others.

He was one of the players I was looking forward to watching the most, because he's been good for Brazil when he has played.

The amount of injuries we have makes a mockery of our over zealous medical department. Players get injured it’s a contact sport played at full speed(sometimes).

I feel for him, hope he makes a full recovery. This is one of the worst Brazil sides I’ve ever seen, he’ll miss the experience but they ain’t getting near the trophy but still a shame.

3 hours ago, C3blue said:

The amount of injuries we have makes a mockery of our over zealous medical department. Players get injured it’s a contact sport played at full speed(sometimes).

I feel for him, hope he makes a full recovery. This is one of the worst Brazil sides I’ve ever seen, he’ll miss the experience but they ain’t getting near the trophy but still a shame.

Quite a few of the players we have signed are on the young side still developing physically esp the ones around 18-19. Needless to day, they don't have quite a history of injuries or not -- early days in their careers.
Then we've got players who have a very long history of injuries, like Lavia and Fofana (did not stop us from signing them).

Agreed on the Brazil side. The midfield in particular with an ageing Casemiro and the ball-carrying Bruno G. is dire to watch.

Edited April 25Apr 25 by acaeus

On 22/04/2026 at 20:30, Scott Harris said:

3-6 months. As bad as it gets with with this injury.

given our track record with hammies, double or triple that legnth.

Really bad luck. Club and anything associated with it is cursed at times. It looked so innocuous in the moment, like a stumble.

Wishing a full recovery. Must be pretty devastated given World Cup and his rise.

Really hope those reports he’s trying to make it back in time for the WC are rubbish.,

Bloke needs to spend the entire summer in rehab and bulking up.

5 hours ago, Sconnie Blue said:

Really hope those reports he’s trying to make it back in time for the WC are rubbish.,

Bloke needs to spend the entire summer in rehab and bulking up.

I think bulking up is part of the problem. Bulking up so quickly puts extra strain on your tendons and ligaments. I feel like this is where we go wrong in English football with foreign players. We always want them to put on a ton off muscle and bulk up, but I don't see the same abroad. You can become stronger without adding so much bulk to your build, Salah is a good example of this. He was slim and weak for us, and at Liverpool he has been much stronger without really filling out too much. He just added muscle to his already slim build. City's players are the same. Mahrez was skinny as a rake, but he wasn't forced to bulk up. Sterling, Bernardo Silva, they were the same.

When we had Willian, we didn't force him to bulk up. His build never changed from day 1.

I rarely see any advantages to filling out in modern football. It's better to add muscle to your natural build without adding all of that bulk.

Wrong words. Fill into his body more like.

On 27/04/2026 at 02:31, Scott Harris said:

I think bulking up is part of the problem. Bulking up so quickly puts extra strain on your tendons and ligaments. I feel like this is where we go wrong in English football with foreign players. We always want them to put on a ton off muscle and bulk up, but I don't see the same abroad. You can become stronger without adding so much bulk to your build, Salah is a good example of this. He was slim and weak for us, and at Liverpool he has been much stronger without really filling out too much. He just added muscle to his already slim build. City's players are the same. Mahrez was skinny as a rake, but he wasn't forced to bulk up. Sterling, Bernardo Silva, they were the same.

When we had Willian, we didn't force him to bulk up. His build never changed from day 1.

I rarely see any advantages to filling out in modern football. It's better to add muscle to your natural build without adding all of that bulk.

It isn't limited to foreign players and isn't particularly English tbh. Through friends working in sports science/S&C at PL and Championship level, it seems the common concern is actually that football managers don't devote enough time to strength & conditioning work at all levels, and that players think they can fill the gap by hiring a personal trainer to work on their 'fitness'.

Research shows that training must be sports-specific to the movement patterns of that sport, and training must be individualised to the player. Football has somewhat embraced the former, but there are huge practical obstacles to the sport engaging in the latter. The goal is to optimise for repeated explosive movements. Most of my friends who actually work in this profession believe the ultimate goal is essentially to build lean muscle without increasing body mass through excess fat or hypertrophy.

Football managers have in their head that players need to look stronger. Players worry they won't get picked if they don't bulk up. Especially in this modern tactico era, managers have no interest in taking time away from video tactics sessions. So players often 'take initiative' by hiring their own staff to train them outside the club; these professionals don't have access to the training data that an in-house sports scientist or conditioning coach has, so they program differently. The player ends up with a mish-mash of competing expectations and methods from the manager, his fitness coach, the club's medical personnel and their own personal trainer. But going back to the research, it is not effective at either improving performance or reducing injury unless it is targeted, sports-specific and individualised to that player.

This is actually one of the things that IMO most points to BlueCo's ineptitude - American sports are so far ahead of the PL in terms of sports science, that expertise and practice is one of the few things that could genuinely have revolutionised the PL much like Wenger did back in the 1990s. Yet not an ounce of that has been used in England by BlueCo, except for that one time they went doctor-shopping to find someone willing to clear Wesley Fofana on a medical.

Edited April 29Apr 29 by SydneyChelsea

our medical department has been a horror show since Mourinho abused Eva. The curse runs deep.

Left out of the Brazilian World Cup squad, glad common sense has prevailed. He has had a very strange debut season, and i can’t make my mind up about him. Best thing that could happen to him in the long run is we sell Enzo, move Palmer into the “10” so he can get game time on the RW.