Carlton ruck-forward Matthew Kreuzer faces possible surgery if he fails to show he has overcome a foot injury in the next week.

The former No.1 draft pick missed the Blues’ AFL semi-final loss to Sydney in September 2013 and had post-season foot surgery.

Kreuzer didn’t have a big impact in Carlton’s round-one loss to Port Adelaide and was a late withdrawal from Thursday’s round-two clash with Richmond, which the Tigers won by 12 points.

Carlton football boss Andrew McKay says Kreuzer’s fitness will be tested in two running sessions over the next few days.

“If he doesn’t pull up well, then we will need to reassess,” McKay told reporters on Friday.

Kreuzer, 24, will do some light running on Saturday and run laps at training on Monday.

“He’s still a bit sore from the previous week and we gave him every opportunity to be right for last night’s game but he just didn’t pull up,” McKay said.

“The doctors said it was worth giving him a little bit more of a rest.”

Essendon host the Blues at the MCG in round three on Sunday April 6.

“We’re confident he’ll be right, and certainly he is confident,” McKay said.

“We just have to see how it goes mid-week.

“We’re just concerned that if we put too much load on it early on then it he will start feeling it again.

“Then you get the inconsistent performance I suppose when he gets on the field feeling alright to start with and then after a while not feeling all right with the dynamic movement in a game so we’d just rather get it right.”

Kreuzer has played 106 AFL games including 17 of a possible 24 in 2013, when he battled thumb, calf and foot complaints.