Chelsea in further shake-up as medical chief leaves over family reasons
Chelsea’s long-serving medical director Dimitrios Kalogiannidis is to leave the club for family reasons, which will prompt another departmental reshuffle.
Kalogiannidis informed the medical department of his decision on Thursday afternoon and will leave Chelsea imminently with the club’s best wishes.
Sources insist Kalogiannidis’s departure is entirely amicable and co-sporting directors Paul Winstanley and Laurence Stewart have not closed the door on a possible return in the future.
Kalogiannidis has worked in Chelsea’s medical department for more than 13 years, earning a promotion to his most recent post, medical director, in October 2022. He has also held the posts of first-team doctor, academy doctor and first-team doctor of the women’s side.
There has been a huge overhaul of Chelsea’s medical department since the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital takeover, with a number of staff losing their jobs and moving on.
But sources insist the departure of Kalogiannidis has not been forced in any way and there was sadness and understanding over his decision to step down because of family reasons.
Nicknamed ‘Dimi’ by players and club staff, Kalogiannidis was a popular and trusted figure at Chelsea.
Chelsea do not need to rush an appointment to replace Kalogiannidis, as his responsibilities can be shared out among the rest of the existing medical department, which will be led in the meantime by head of performance Bryce Cavanagh.
Like many other Premier League clubs this season, Chelsea have suffered from a long list of injuries with the likes of Christopher Nkunku, Ben Chilwell, Reece James and Wesley Fofana all being ruled out for long spells.
After taking over the club, co-controlling owners Boehly and Behdad Eghbali sacked Paco Biosca, who had served as head of medical for 11 years, and Thierry Laurent, who had been employed as head physio and who had worked at Chelsea for 17 years.
The changes to the medical department were partly blamed in some quarters for last season’s injury list and Chelsea’s on-pitch struggles.
