Antonio Rudiger is undergoing surgery in Rome to discover the extent of his knee injury with the central defender set to miss the rest of Chelsea’s season.

Central defender Rudiger is expected to be ruled out of the remainder of the campaign after rushing back to try to help Chelsea clinch Champions League qualification.

Head coach Maurizio Sarri will be without the German international for Chelsea’s Europa League semi-final against Eintracht Frankfurt, the first leg of which is on Thursday night, and the club’s final two Premier League games.

That means Andreas Christensen is set to partner David Luiz at the back, as Chelsea look to hold on to their top four place or win the Europa League to qualify for next season’s Champions League.

Sarri has frozen out club captain Gary Cahill this season, but the 33 year-old may have to come back on to the substitutes’ bench before leaving at the end of his contract in the summer.

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Ruidger had missed two weeks with a knee problem, but was hurried back to face Manchester United in a key Premier League game on Sunday.

He lasted just over 65 minutes, however, and must now wait to find out the extent of the problem. Should meniscus damage be confirmed, then the 26-year-old is looking at a minimum of 10 weeks of rehabilitation.