Petr Cech will miss the return leg of Chelsea's Champions League last-16 tie against Internazionale, together with a clutch of important Premier League fixtures, after the club ruled him out for three to four weeks with a torn calf muscle.

The goalkeeper suffered the injury in Wednesday night's first-leg against Inter at San Siro, which Chelsea lost 2-1, and after undergoing scans, he now knows the extent of the damage. If the prognosis is accurate, Cech will miss the league games against Manchester City and West Ham United, the FA Cup quarter-final with Stoke City and the second leg against Inter on 16 March. And he would still be a doubt for the league matches against Blackburn Rovers and Portsmouth.

Henrique Hilário, the Portuguese reserve, stands by to deputise. "It's a huge blow to lose Pete," Frank Lampard said. "He's in fantastic form as everyone knows. He's always been up there with the best in the world and no one wants to lose that. But Hilário has never let us down. Whenever he's come in, whether it's for one game here or there, or a run of a few games, he's always been fantastic. It's not something we're worried about. We've got Ross Turnbull behind Hilário as well. We have to have faith in them and we've got that."

José Mourinho, the Inter manager, who depended on Cech during his time at Stamford Bridge, is not sorry that the goalkeeper will miss the Champions League second leg. "It would be better for me if he was out, I have to be honest," Mourinho said. "But Hilário is a stable player. He went to Chelsea exactly for this. Remember he played against Barcelona in the Champions League [in 2006], so it is no problem if Hilário plays."