Chelsea boss Mauricio Pochettino has indicated the club will decide whether Reece James requires surgery on Monday.
The Chelsea captain suffered the latest injury setback of his career in last Sunday's 2-0 defeat to Everton at Goodison Park.
After sustaining a hamstring injury, James is set for a lengthy spell on the sidelines regardless of whether he has an operation.
Despite struggling with a number of injury issues in recent seasons, the England international has tried to avoid going under the knife.
However, after suffering a hamstring problem for the second time this season, James may have to undergo surgery to resolve his recurring fitness issues.
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Speaking ahead of Saturday's clash with Sheffield United, Pochettino said that a decision will be made on Monday about the next stage of James's recovery process.
"First, we need to decide how we will proceed with his recovery," Pochettino told reporters. "[On] Monday, we need to see how it is going to be, see the situation and then proceed in trying to find a different way to approach the problem and find different alternatives."
James's latest injury blow could affect his chances of making Gareth Southgate's England squad for Euro 2024 if he is unable to prove his fitness in time.
While a definitive timeframe has not been put on the injury, the 24-year-old is likely to be out of action for at least a couple of months.
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With James bracing himself for a lengthy recovery process, Pochettino has insisted that the club will "support him" during his road back to fitness.
Pochettino added: "It is not a nice situation because I know how he and his family are suffering. He was so excited to be back again and to be fit to help the team in this situation and, yes, we need to be cautious in the way we talk.
"But we are going to support him. We are here to support him, to try and help, and we are all thinking in terms to find a solution for as soon as possible to get him with the group, full recovery then try so the same thing doesn't happen again."
In James's absence, 12th-placed Chelsea will look to bounce back from consecutive defeats when they face basement side Sheffield United at Stamford Bridge on Saturday.
