Chelsea assistant boss Gianfranco Zola absent from Malmo tie after being readmitted to hospital

Gianfranco Zola was readmitted to hospital due to complications relating to gallstone surgery
Getty Images
George Flood21 February 2019

Chelsea assistant coach Gianfranco Zola has been readmitted to hospital following complications relating to gallstone surgery, resulting in his continued absence from the dugout at Stamford Bridge.

Club legend Zola was not present on Monday as the Blues lost 2-0 to Manchester United in the fifth round of the FA Cup and also missed the Europa League last-32 second-leg tie against Swedish outfit Malmo, in which the hosts held a 2-1 advantage before kick-off.

There is no timescale for the return of the 52-year-old, whose absence could be keenly felt by manager Maurizio Sarri, with the 60-year-old's position precarious.

Zola could be an option to succeed Sarri, at least on an interim basis, if the Blues boss is sacked due to poor recent results.

Gallstones are when a crystalline mass forms in the gallbladder and can be painful and cause blockage of the bile duct.

A firm Chelsea favourite, Zola scored 80 goals in 312 appearances for the club as a player between 1996-2003, winning two FA Cups and one League Cup.

The former West Ham, Watford, Cagliari, Al-Arabi and Birmingham boss returned to west London as assistant to under-pressure compatriot Sarri in July 2018.

Chelsea meet Manchester City in the Carabao Cup final on Sunday before successive London derbies against Tottenham and Fulham.

Additional reporting by the Press Association.

Create a FREE account to continue reading

eros

Registration is a free and easy way to support our journalism.

Join our community where you can: comment on stories; sign up to newsletters; enter competitions and access content on our app.

Your email address

Must be at least 6 characters, include an upper and lower case character and a number

You must be at least 18 years old to create an account

* Required fields

Already have an account? SIGN IN

By clicking Create Account you confirm that your data has been entered correctly and you have read and agree to our Terms of use , Cookie policy and Privacy policy .

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged in