He is now set to miss Chelsea's highly-anticipated opening match against United

The German centre half limped off against Manchester United at the end of April

Chelsea suffered a blow on Wednesday as defender Antonio Rudiger is unlikely to recover from a knee injury in time for the beginning of next season.

The German centre half did not feature for the Blues last season after limping off against Manchester United at the end of April.

Rudiger had an operation on his knee and now could miss Chelsea's highly-anticipated opening match against Manchester United on August 11, according to The Telegraph.

Antonio Rudiger is unlikely to recover from a knee injury in time for beginning of next season

The 26-year-old reportedly does not want to return to action earlier than planned and could also sit out the Super Cup tie against Liverpool on August 14.

Having missed two weeks with an original knee injury, Rudiger was rushed back for the clash at Old Trafford last season in order to play a lead role in Chelsea's efforts to regain their Champions League status.

Rudiger missed the latter stages of the campaign but the Blues did finish third and won the Europa League.

He did not feature for Blues last season after limping off against Man United at the end of April

The defender was seen on crutches following the Europa League triumph over Arsenal in Baku last month.

He was also seen hopping without his crutches as he danced to the music at the Four Seasons hotel in the Azerbaijan capital during the club's celebrations.

Meanwhile, Frank Lampard is enjoying some time away in the sun with wife Christine as he prepares to enter talks with Chelsea about their vacant manager's job.