How long Chelsea’s Armando Broja could be sidelined for after requiring surgery on ruptured ACL

Armando Broja’s season for Chelsea looks to be over after he ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament and the length of his absence has been revealed.

The 21-year-old was stretchered off during Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa on Sunday afternoon in a friendly in Abu Dhabi.

Broja fell to the ground screaming after chasing Ezri Konsa down and head coach Graham Potter admitted the injury didn’t look positive when giving his initial assessment post-match.

“It was an unfortunate action, I think he got caught up with their player and the ground,” said the 47-year-old. “It doesn’t look positive at the moment, but it is too early to say. Fingers crossed, but it’s an awkward one.”

But Chelsea’s worse fears were confirmed, as reported by the Evening Standard, after it was revealed that Broja requires surgery to fix a ruptured cruciate ligament in his right knee.

It will leave Broja sidelined for a lengthy period of time and that timeframe has now been confirmed.

The Albania international will soon begin his rehabilitation programme which will rule him out for at least the next five months, with the worst-case scenario being a maximum of 12 months.

It may force Chelsea to head into the January transfer market to sign a back-up striker to cover for Broja’s absence.

Cristiano Ronaldo and Atletico Madrid’s Joao Felix are both set to be available next month, while Chelsea are interested in Borussia Dortmund’s Youssoufa Moukoko who is out of contract at the end of the season.