Chelsea midfielder Carney Chukwuemeka has undergone surgery on a knee injury that will rule him out of action until October at the earliest.
The 19-year-old was forced off at half time of the Blues’ 3-1 defeat to West Ham United at the London Stadium on Sunday after sustaining the injury late in the first half. The youngster scored his side’s only goal of the game in the 28th minute.
Despite the need for surgery, Chelsea believe Chukwuemeka will only need six weeks to recover from the operation.
It means the former Aston Villa starlet could return for the Premier League meeting with Arsenal in October. In the meantime he will miss games against Luton, Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth, Villa, Fulham and Burnley.
It’s the latest in a long list of injury woes to hit Chelsea, with nine players currently on the treatment table.
The west London outfit lost Christopher Nkunku and Wesley Fofana to injury in pre-season, while Reece James is out with a hamstring issue after being subbed off in the opening game against Liverpool.
Chelsea injury list in full:
Carney Chukwuemeka – knee
Reece James – hamstring
Christopher Nkunku – knee
Wesley Fofana – cruciate ligament
Armando Broja – cruciate ligament
Benoit Badiashile – groin
Malang Sarr – rib
Trevoh Chalobah – hamstring
Marcus Bettinelli – unknown
