Chelsea have been hit with further bad news in that French midfielder Claude Makelele faces a further three weeks on the sidelines.
The influential Frenchman was rushed to hospital for an ear operation following difficulty keeping his balance.
Blues boss Avram Grant now looks increasingly likely to splash the cash in the January transfer window as Chelsea struggle to come to terms with an increasing injury list and the onset of the African Nations Cup.
“Makelele had a problem in his ear, a big problem that affected his balance even when he was walking” Avram Grant said in ‘The People’.
“We didn’t want to do it because we need every player, but he will be out for maybe three weeks.”
Makelele joins John Terry, Frank Lampard, and Didier Drogba in the treatment room as Avram Grant goes into the New Year without four of his most experienced players.
