There are fears Ben Chilwell could be rules out for the rest of Chelsea’s season after the left-back suffered a knee injury in the side’s 4-0 win over Juventus.
Goals from Trevoh Chalobah, Reece James, Callum Hudson-Odoi and Timo Werner booked them a place in the Champions League last 16, but Chilwell’s injury put a slight dampener on the club’s win.
Chilwell, a mainstay in Thomas Tuchel’s starting lineup this campaign, awkwardly jarred his knee with 20 minutes left of Tuesday’s one-sided Group H clash at Stamford Bridge.
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The 24-year-old appeared in discomfort as he slammed his fist on the ground and had to be helped off the turf by Chelsea’s medical staff, with Azpilicueta coming on in his place.
According to The Sun and The Telegraph, The Blues are sweating over the results of Chilwell’s scan as damage to the player’s anterior cruciate ligament could rule him out for around six and nine months.
The severity of Chilwell’s injury would also be a huge concern for England’s head coach Gareth Southgate, with the defender involved in both of the Three Lions’ matches versus Albania and San Marino during the recent international break.
N’Golo Kante also hobbled off with a knee problem in the first half of Chelsea’s victory, but the player’s issue is not believed to be serious and there are hopes he could even feature against Manchester United this Sunday.
‘He [Chilwell] has a sharp pain in the knee, unfortunately N’Golo as well, he twisted his knee a little bit,’ Chelsea head coach Tuchel told BT Sport shortly after the final whistle in west London.
‘I can tell you more tomorrow, they will both be examined. ‘That was the only two things that were very sad because N’Golo was again fantastic until the moment he went off.
‘Chilly is in a fantastic moment, so, so important for him personally, so, so strong. Let’s hope for the best.’
Chilwell has been in superb form at both ends of the pitch this season, nailing down his place as Tuchel’s first-choice left-back and notching up three goals and an assist in the Premier League.
Marcos Alonso, an unused substitute against Juventus, is likely to replace Chilwell for Chelsea’s game with United this weekend.
Club skipper Azpilicueta and Andreas Christensen are alternative options for Tuchel, with the latter having played at left-back on occasion for the Danish national side.
