Too bad: Baba Rahman not tall enough for Premier League

José Mourinho is considering using Kurt Zouma as a full-back in Chelsea's vital Premier League game against  Aston Villa  on Saturday after Branislav Ivanovic was ruled out for up to a month with a hamstring injury sustained while on international duty with Serbia.

Ivanovic, who has endured a miserable campaign to date, damaged a hamstring in the  2-0 win in Albania  last week and returned to Cobham over the weekend for scans and treatment. Those tests have suggested an absence of around three weeks at best, ruling him out of the visit of Villa when Chelsea will seek to revive their title defence after their worst start to a domestic campaign in 37 years.

play Branislav Ivanovic, left, injured a hamstring playing for Serbia against Albania and is set to be out for at least three weeks. Photograph: Srdjan Stevanovic/Getty Images