Chelsea manager Emma Hayes says that Czechia international midfielder Kateřina Svitková is unlikely to be fit before January.
The 27-year-old has endured an injury-plagued spell with The Blues after joining the club from West Ham United in summer 2022 and her bad luck on the injury front seems unlikely to change in the near future.
Svitková is yet to make an appearance for Chelsea this season with the midfielder continuing to be troubled by a knee injury and manager Hayes says that a pre-Christmas return to action for the player is unlikely.
“When Katerina first joined the club, she was fit and available but she developed a combination of issues in her knee,” Hayes told WSL Full-Time in a Chelsea press conference. “They are issues that took up a large chunk of last season.
“She started pre-season and there was a hope that we could keep building up that knee but she has had a setback with that. I believe that we are in the process of seeing whether she can manage the rehab without having a surgical procedure but it’s never a straight line with healing.
“I don’t think she will be available this side of January but it depends on whether she needs surgery.”
Svitková made just three appearances for Chelsea in last season’s Barclays Women’s Super League. She had to bide her time for playing opportunities while a three-month injury lay-off in the second half of last season didn’t help her cause.
A further update on the player’s fitness will be provided in due course.
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