Chelsea midfielder Barkley suffers fresh hamstring problem

Ross Barkley is expected to miss Chelsea’s trip to Watford on Monday with fears the midfielder suffered a fresh hamstring injury in training, reports The Daily Telegraph.

The 24-year-old missed the first six months of the season after undergoing surgery on a hamstring injury before joining Chelsea in the January transfer window in a deal worth £15m.

Barkley has, unsurprisingly, endured a slow start to life at Chelsea after only just recovering from the original injury but now Antonio Conte’s side fear he could be set for another spell on the sidelines.

While the full extent of the injury has not been established, the England international is not expected to feature against Watford on Monday to add to Conte’s woes at the moment.

The Chelsea manager is already expected to be with star striker Alvaro Morata, while also conceding doubts on Friday whether new striker Olivier Giroud is ready to make his full debut for the Blues.

Andreas Christensen became the seventh Chelsea player to suffer a hamstring injury this season during their shock loss at home to Bournemouth in midweek with Barkley set to become the eighth.

Barkley has played in 131 minutes of action across three matches since joining Chelsea, only managing one shot and two key passes in that time.