Moises Caicedo was a key player for Chelsea last season but now that the ‘Blues‘ play Fulham in the 2026-27 Premier League Matchday 1, he is not featured at all. The Ecuadorian is not even in the bench for this game.
Per Bobby Vincent of Mirror Sport, Moises Caicedo and also winger Marco Palestra are missing the game against Fulham due to minor injuries picked up during the week. Hence, he should be back next week or the week after.
The fact is that these are not good news, especially on the Caicedo side as he is a key player for Chelsea. However, the silver lining is that it is a minor injury and he should be back soon for a team desperate to do well after years of bad performances.
Who will play instead of Caicedo?
Given Caicedo’s absence, Xabi Alonso had to call an audible and adjust the starting lineup. Alonso opted to pair Reece James alongside Romeo Lavia in the central midfield pivot instead.
Here’s your Starting XI. ⚔️#CFC | #FULCHE pic.twitter.com/HIWiKHAbIP
— Chelsea FC USA (@ChelseaFCinUSA) August 24, 2026
Alonso will have a 3-4-2-1 lineup against Fulham. It is as follows: Robert Sanchez; Josh Acheampong, Maxence Lacroix, Levi Colwill; Malo Gusto, Romeo Lavia, Reece James, Jorrel Hato; Cole Palmer, Joao Pedro, Morgan Rogers.
Fulham’s lineup vs Chelsea
As for Fulham, new manager Alvaro Arbeloa will use a 4-2-3-1 formation with plenty of new signings as well. Hence, it will be interesting to see if the new philosophy is already looking fine.
This is their lineup: Bernd Leno; Timothy Castagne, Jorge Cuenca, Calvin Bassey, Antonee Robinson; Joshua King, Sander Berge; Alex Iwobi, Oscar Bobb, Cesar Palacios; Gonzalo Garcia.
