Ben Chilwell making up for lost time to lift Chelsea and nudge Southgate

A mundane win over Dinamo Zagreb in the Champions League was drawing to a close when Ben Chilwell’s small supply of luck ran out. His punishment for attempting one last sprint was to feel the pain shooting up his left hamstring and, as he lay on the turf in front of the West Stand at Stamford Bridge, receiving treatment from the physios and listening to some consoling words from Mason Mount, the Chelsea defender struggled to keep the emotions at bay.

There were tears in Chilwell’s eyes when he got back to his feet and hobbled off. All those lonely hours in the treatment room at Cobham; all they added up to was more heartbreak. Barely a year had passed since Chilwell had been in a similar situation. A damaged anterior cruciate ligament injury, sustained towards the end of Chelsea’s 4-0 win over Juventus in the Champions League in November 2021, was behind him. He was fit again and pushing for a place in England’s squad for the World Cup. Another injury felt cruel.

But it was unavoidable. Chilwell had been in and out since the start of the season, the coaching staff keen to protect him, but his body gave up again. The timing could hardly have been worse. Gareth Southgate was a week from naming his World Cup squad and Chilwell, who had hoped to compete with Luke Shaw for a place on the left side of England’s defence, knew there was no chance he was going to Qatar.

The frustration was also vast for Chelsea. They were top of the league when Chilwell was injured against Juve. Thomas Tuchel’s system had flourished with Chilwell surging down the left and Reece James dominating the right. Assessing his two key wing-backs, Tuchel would often describe them as being more like No 10s than defenders. “It’s a very important position