Chelsea have been handed an injury scare just days ahead of the new season as mega-money signing Christopher Nkunku limped off the pitch with a suspected knee injury against Borussia Dortmund.
The Frenchman, who joined Chelsea for a fee in excess of £60m this summer from RB Leipzig, was forced off after just 22 minutes against the German side, after appearing to injure his knee in a tackle.
It ended what had been an excellent pre-season for the 25-year-old, who had scored 3 times in five games heading into the clash with Dortmund, while it also raises question marks about his fitness for the opening day of the new campaign, which sees Chelsea take on Liverpool in 10 days time.
Nkunku suffered a serious knee injury last season which saw him ruled out of action for three months, missing the 2022 World Cup in the process. Fortunately for Chelsea though, this appears to be the other knee, dampening fears that it could be a reoccurrence of that issue.
Blues boss Mauricio Pochettino remains hopeful that he can return soon, but admitted that he needed ‘a few days’ to be properly assessed.
‘The doctors are checking him and I hope it is not a big issue. He fell in the action which was maybe a penalty and he feels something in his knee but we hope it is nothing big,’
Chelsea will already begin the season without French pair Wesley Fofana and Benoit Badiashile, with Fofana expected to miss much of the season with a knee issue and Badiashile still recovering from a hamstring problem picked up last season.
