Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur is set for another spell on the sidelines after suffering ankle ligament damage.
A late challenge from Matty Cash in Sunday's defeat to Aston Villa saw the Spurs star's comeback from a nine-month injury absence cut short only 32 minutes into the game.
Bentancur was sent for scans on Tuesday which revealed ankle ligament damage for the 26-year-old.
Spurs expect him to miss around ten weeks of action, approximately ruling him out until early February.
The injury comes at a terrible time for both player and club, after Bentancur spent the best part of a year recovering from a serious knee injury before his highly-anticipated return on the weekend.
Ange Postecoglou welcomed him back amid a spate of absences in his squad, with James Maddison, Micky van de Ven, Manor Solomon, Richarlison and Ivan Perisic among those unavailable.
Pape Sarr missed the Villa defeat too but should shake off his knock soon while Yves Bissouma and Cristian Romero will be available after suspension when Spurs travel to Manchester City on Sunday.
Postecoglou admitted after the game that Bentancur's injury sums up his team's luck on the fitness front.
"It wasn’t a great tackle," he said of Cash, who was booed by Tottenham fans and booked for the foul, before being taken off by Unai Emery at half time.
"I thought he started the game so well.
"That’s the last thing we need — another injury. We’ve got eight [players injured], Bentancur nine. We lost Ashley Phillips in the week as well. It’s just the situation we’re in at the minute.
"We’ll get through it. It might take a while, but we’ll get through it. I’m sure when you come through the other side, we’ll be a very good football team. We’ve just got to make sure the players stay focused on what’s important right now."
