Xabi Alonso confirmed two new additions to Chelsea's injury list ahead of Saturday’s Premier League trip to Everton.

Earlier on Friday, Chelsea announced that team captain Reece James has undergone successful minor knee surgery. The 26-year-old sustained an injury in training and was absent from Chelsea’s 5-1 win over Bournemouth last weekend.

Reports suggest James could be out for approximately three months, and Alonso practically confirmed this in Friday afternoon's press conference.

“We don’t have the exact time,” the Chelsea manager said about James’ injury absence.

“It’s not going to be short or two, three weeks. We will see before Christmas, after Christmas, we will see.”

James has operated as a centre-midfielder this season, and Alonso still has plenty of options in this area, such as Moises Caicedo, Jordan Henderson, Romeo Lavia, and Valentin Barco. Alonso could also opt for academy options, Reggie Watson and Mahdi Nicoll-Jazuli, if needed.

As for captaincy, the vice-captains, Levi Colwill, Caicedo, and Cole Palmer, will have to step up. Colwill wore the armband when James was absent against Bournemouth last Saturday.

Alonso also insisted that he does not think a player needs the captain’s armband to lead the team. Obviously, Chelsea have veterans such as Henderson and Danny Welbeck, who could help lead the team amid James’ recovery period.

The second addition to the injury list is Emmanuel Emegha.

The 23-year-old striker joined Chelsea in the summer on a pre-agreement that was struck with Strasbourg last year. He is the only Blues summer signing yet to make his debut for the club.

The Netherlands international has struggled with hamstring issues, which also prevented him from joining the club’s pre-season tour in Australia and Asia.

Emegha has only made the bench once this season, in the Carabao Cup win over Luton Town in late August, and has not made the team sheets since, despite being spotted in training in the last few weeks.

Interestingly, Alonso is adamant that the striker has a lot to offer to the team once he overcomes the fitness problem.

“He’s not yet (fit),” Alonso said about Emegha. “He felt something yesterday, a little thing. He’s going to be training next week.

“He’s still not 100 per cent fit to be playing in the game. When he is fit, he is very special. He’s 1.95m; he’s quick and attacks the space.”

Joao Pedro’s outstanding form and Welbeck’s presence have made Emegha’s absence barely noticeable this season. However, as Alonso pointed out, having a more physical presence like Emegha up front would certainly benefit the team.

James and Emegha accompany Jamie Gittens on Chelsea’s injury list, which, to be fair, has shrunk considerably compared to at the start of the season.

Gittens suffered an ankle injury while on international duty with England Under-21s. Alonso said it would take “a few weeks” before the young winger could return.