Chelsea have revealed that Christopher Nkunku will be sidelined for an "extended period" with a knee injury.
Nkunku has had surgery on his injury and started a rehabilitation programme.
See: Chelsea's statement on Nkunku
It is a big blow heading into Mauricio Pochettino's first season as Chelsea head coach.
Nkunku is Chelsea's top scorer this pre-season, scoring three goals since signing from RB Leipzig, helping his new club win the Premier League Summer Series in the United States.
Nkunku for the Blues 🎈🎈#PLSummerSeries pic.twitter.com/OaTeTF8cuL
— Premier League (@premierleague) August 2, 2023
His return date is unknown but Chelsea begin the season with Premier League fixtures against Liverpool (H), West Ham United (A), Luton Town (H), Nottingham Forest (H), AFC Bournemouth (A) and Aston Villa (H).
Nkunku's injury is bad news for many Fantasy Premier League managers, too.
The 9.1% of managers who own him will be looking for a replacement ahead of Friday's Gameweek 1 deadline.
The Scout says
"Nicolas Jackson (£7.0m) is set to rise in popularity after injury to his fellow Chelsea forward Christopher Nkunku (£7.5m).
"Jackson has the form to take advantage of a very favourable run of opponents for the Blues from Gameweek 3 onwards. He was involved in a team-high five goals over the summer, scoring two and assisting a further three."
