Chelsea star Christopher Nkunku has undergone surgery on his knee injury sustained in Chicago, and he is likely to be out for up to 16 weeks, the English Premier League club confirmed.
The summer signing from RB Leipzig played just over 20 minutes against Borussia Dortmund last Thursday in Chicago before being forced off after catching his studs in the turf, with Mykhailo Mudryk coming on as his replacement.
Mauricio Pochettino was not able to confirm the extent of the problem afterwards but hoped it would be ‘nothing big’, but unfortunately the injury is worse than originally feared.
Chelsea star Christopher Nkunku, who was plagued by injuries last season, has required surgery on the issue and is set to be out of action for months rather than weeks.
A statement from the club on Tuesday read: ‘Nkunku has sustained a knee injury which will rule the forward out for an extended period.
‘The 25-year-old has undergone an operation and will now begin a rehabilitation programme with the club’s medical department.’
A lay-off of that length will mean Nkunku will be targeting a return to action at the backend of November following the international break, with Chelsea visiting Newcastle on November 25.
Even that may come too soon, though, with the Telegraph claiming he will be sidelined for 16 weeks and is unlikely to play again before December.
Nkunku tore his knee ligaments on the eve of last year’s World Cup, forcing him to miss the tournament, and then suffered further issues following his return to action in February.
Despite his lack of consistent game time in the second half of the campaign, he still netted 16 goals and finished as the Bundesliga’s joint top scorer.