Moises Caicedo took part in Chelsea’s behind-closed-doors friendly defeat to Portsmouth while still working on his way back from his calf injury, according to reports.

The Blues arranged a behind-closed-doors friendly against Championship side Portsmouth last Saturday during the international break.

There has been very little information about the match, but Chelsea, who were without many of their internationals and had been dealing with injury issues, suffered a 2-0 defeat to John Mousinho's side.

However, a latest surprise report from the Daily Mail reveals that Caicedo, whose availability for Saturday’s clash against Bournemouth remains unclear, featured against Portsmouth.

The 24-year-old has missed the majority of the start of the season after sustaining an injury in training just before the campaign began. He briefly returned as a second-half substitute against his former club, Brighton & Hove Albion, before being forced off just 14 minutes later.

He has been out since and even skipped international duty with Ecuador.

According to the Daily Mail, Caicedo’s involvement against Pompey was minimal, and he is believed not to have played the full 45 minutes of the first half. However, it was as intended. Chelsea wanted to build him up while treating his calf issue cautiously.

The disappointing result also did not cause concern for the club since the friendly was mostly about getting players who had been dealing with injuries back up to speed and tactical experimentation.

Even more interestingly, Caicedo hasn't featured in any training photos Chelsea have released in the last couple of weeks. As mentioned, it is unclear whether he will be in contention to face Bournemouth. Fans will hope Alonso answers this question during his scheduled pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon.

Several other players remain doubtful for the weekend, including key players like Cole Palmer, Reece James, and Joao Pedro.

Palmer and Joao Pedro had to withdraw from England’s and Brazil’s squads, respectively, due to muscle and knee injuries. James, meanwhile, missed Chelsea’s defeat to Brentford before the international break with a hamstring injury.

The earlier expectation is that these three would be back in time to face Bournemouth. However, like Caicedo, their absence from training photos doesn't look promising.

While Chelsea will look to bounce back with a win after the Brentford loss, risking these key players so early in the season, if they have yet to fully recover, would not be ideal.