Reece James and Levi Colwill could return to Chelsea's squad for Monday's meeting with Nottingham Forest, interim head coach Calum McFarlane has revealed.
Colwill has not played this season after suffering an anterior cruciate ligament injury on the first day of pre-season training, while James has been out since the middle of March with a hamstring problem, but both are now back in full training.
Captain James' readiness to return will be welcome news to England manager Thomas Tuchel as his final decision on World Cup selections nears.
"Reece is back in training," said McFarlane. "Levi is back in training. Both looking good. Little bit of a way to the game [on Monday] so we'll see how they do day by day, but both are looking promising.
"We're taking it day by day. Levi has had a long injury. Reece had a really good run and has been injured again. There's a lot of games still to play, so we don't want to push too much. Hopefully they'll come through."
Asked whether both players could make the squad for the game at Stamford Bridge, McFarlane said: "Potentially, yeah."
McFarlane defended Enzo Fernández's decision to travel to Madrid after the squad were given time off following Sunday's FA Cup semi-final win over Leeds.
The Argentina international was suspended internally for two matches recently after appearing to court a move to Real Madrid during a podcast interview, saying he would like to live in the Spanish capital.
Fernández was seen attending the Madrid Open with teammates Marc Cucurella and João Pedro.
"We gave the lads three days off," said McFarlane. "I think it says a lot about the group that they go away together. I love the fact that they spend time together.
"They've gone to Madrid to watch tennis. I don't see an issue with it. He was there last year with his teammates. The last time they had a break they spent time together as well. I think it's a positive sign for the unity within the group."
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Chelsea are in desperate need of a win against in-form Forest, having lost their last five in a row in the league without scoring.
By Monday it will be exactly two months since they last found the net in a league game, away against Aston Villa.
If Villa and Liverpool win their games on Sunday it will also mean Chelsea's hopes of finishing in the top five are mathematically over, although it is already highly unlikely they will make up the 10-point gap in the four games that remain.
"We just have to win our games and not worry about anything else," said McFarlane, who can still lead the team into the Europa League through their league finish or by beating Manchester City in the FA Cup final.
"We have to make sure our performance levels are right and the results will come."
McFarlane dismissed suggestions that working conditions at the club could put off top managers from taking the job.
"It's one of the biggest clubs in the world, a great history of winning," he said. "Some of the best players in the world here. You've got everything you could want. I don't think I need to sell that."
