England defender Ashley Cole is a doubt for the World Cup in South Africa this summer because of the ankle injury which has effectively ended his season for Chelsea. The first-choice left-back fractured his ankle in Wednesday night's 2-1 Premier League defeat at Everton and now faces a gruelling rehabilitation programme to stand any chance of making Fabio Capello's squad. England open their 2010 World Cup campaign on June 12 against USA but Capello has made it clear he will only take match-fit players for the showpiece tournament. A spokesman for Chelsea confirmed late on Thursday: "Ashley suffered a fracture to his left ankle in last night's game against Everton and is expected to be out of action for approximately three months."