Roma face injury crisis ahead of clash with Chelsea

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Roma face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday in the Champions League
The Italian side are set to be without Greek defender Kostas Manolas for the trip
Manolas was taken off with a thigh strain in Roma's recent 1-0 defeat by Napoli
The defender will join a number of Roma first-team stars on the sidelines

Published: 16:15 EDT, 15 October 2017 | Updated: 16:15 EDT, 15 October 2017

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Roma's build-up to their Champions League clash with Chelsea on Wednesday has been far from ideal as they are currently facing an injury crisis.

Rome face Chelsea on Wednesday night at Stamford Bridge as they look to continue their strong start in the group stage after picking up four points from their first two games.

However, Chelsea, who were defeated 2-1 by Crystal Palace on Saturday, could come up against a second-string Roma side after Kostas Manolas was taken off with a thigh strain in the club's loss against Napoli on Saturday.

Kostas Manolas is set to miss Roma's Champions League clash with Chelsea on Wednesday

Manolas was forced off with a thigh injury in Roma's 1-0 defeat by Napoli on Saturday

The Greek defender is set to join team-mates Stephan El Shaaraway, Patrik Shick, Kevin Strootman, Gregoire Defrel and Emerson Palmieri on the sidelines.

Meanwhile, the Serie A outfit are monitoring the fitness of 21-year-old Lorenzo Pellegrini, who was also forced off in the costly defeat by Napoli on the weekend.

Speaking ahead of the match with Chelsea, Roma manager Eusebio Di Francesco practically ruled out Manolas.

Eusebio Di Francesco will be without a number of first-team players for the match with Chelsea

Di Francesco said: '(Manolas) hurt himself and I think it is practically impossible to see him on the pitch on Wednesday.

'There are various reasons behind the injuries, some are knocks, some are past issues. If I had been able to train with them from the start, it'd be different.

'I don't like to look towards these things. I would prefer to have more choices to make, but I don't at this moment.'