Armando Broja Chelsea 2022-23Getty Images

Season over! Broja tears ACL in Chelsea friendly forcing Blues to consider January transfer

  • Broja injured in 22nd minute of friendly
  • Diagnosed with torn ACL
  • Chelsea will consider January signing

WHAT HAPPENING? Broja was stretchered off during the Blues' mid-season friendly with Villa. Now, the club have confirmed that he is set to miss the rest of the season having torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. The Evening Standard also report that the injury could tempt Chelsea into the January transfer market for a temporary fix.

WHAT THEY SAID: A Chelsea statement read: "Having sustained a knee injury during the first half of Sunday’s friendly against Aston Villa, Armando underwent further assessment following the club’s return to England. Scan results from those assessments have unfortunately confirmed an anterior cruciate ligament rupture and that surgery will be required. Following the operation, Armando will work closely with the club’s medical department during his rehabilitation and is expected to miss the remainder of the 2022/23 campaign."

THE BIGGER PICTURE: A deal that will bring RB Leipzig's Christopher Nkunku to Stamford Bridge next summer is seemingly all but done, but that doesn't solve the problem that is the gap now left by Broja. The 21-year-old had already featured 18 times in all competitions for Chelsea before the World Cup break, proving a key cog in the machine for Graham Potter.

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AND WHAT'S MORE: With Broja now braced for surgery to fix the torn ligament, he could potentially face up to 12 months out of action in the worst case scenario.

STORY IN THREE PHOTOS:

Armando BrojaGettyBroja injured ChelseaGetty ImagesGraham Potter 2022-23Getty

WHAT NEXT FOR CHELSEA? Potter's side return to competitive action on December 27, hosting Bournemouth in the Premier League.

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