Chelsea midfielder Michael Essien will be out of action for at least five months after rupturing an anterior cruciate knee ligament.

"I spoke to Michael and he's obviously had a bad injury," Chelsea captain John Terry told a news conference in Zagreb ahead of England's [Images] World Cup qualifier against Croatia.

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"He was saying it was like five or five and a half months."

The Chelsea website said Essien had sustained the injury playing for Ghana against Libya in a World Cup qualifier last Friday and would undergo surgery once the swelling had subsided.