Van Ginkel ruled out for entire season with cruciate ligament injury

Marco van Ginkel's first season at Chelsea has been wrecked by a knee ligament injury which will rule out the midfielder for around nine months and has ended his hopes of playing for Holland at next summer's World Cup.

Scans confirmed on Wednesday that Van Ginkel tore an anterior cruciate ligament in the opening 10 minutes of Chelsea's Capital One Cup victory at Swindon Town. The lengthy absence is a cruel blow to the £9m summer signing from Vitesse Arnhem and a significant one for Chelsea's manager, José Mourinho.

Chelsea 1 - 2 FC Basel

Chelsea agree fee for midfielder Marco van Ginkel

Chelsea have reached an agreement over the signing of the midfielder Marco van Ginkel from Vitesse Arnhem. The 20-year-old, who played for Holland in this year's European Under-21 Championships having made his senior debut last year, has two years remaining on his contract with the Eredivisie club and will reportedly cost £8m.

A short statement on Chelsea's website said: "Chelsea Football Club and Vitesse Arnhem have reached an agreement for the transfer of Marco van Ginkel. The player will join Chelsea subject to a medical, agreement of personal terms and legal documentation."

Van Ginkel has come up through the ranks at Vitesse, making his senior debut in 2010 and establishing himself as a regular in the starting line-up last season.