Chelsea's Zouma faces six months out after knee surgery

Chelsea's French defender Kurt Zouma needs knee surgery and is likely to be out of action for six months, the Premier League champions said on Monday.

The news is a blow for the west Londoners, who face Paris St Germain in the last 16 of the Champions League next week, and Zouma's hopes of playing at the European championship finals in France in June.

Chelsea said the 21-year-old centre back, who arrived at Stamford Bridge in 2014 and has become a team regular, injured his anterior cruciate ligament in the 1-1 draw against Manchester United on Sunday.

"Kurt will undergo surgery in the next 48 hours and is expected to be out for approximately six months," they said on their website (www.chelseafc.com).

Zouma has been on the fringes of his national team ahead of Euro 2016, earning his first cap last March and playing twice, but has made 32 appearances for Chelsea.