Crystal Palace defender Pape Souare could miss up to six months of the season after breaking his thighbone in a car crash, revealed manager Alan Pardew.
The 26-year-old Senegal international was rushed to hospital following the accident on Sunday, also ruling him out of the African Cup of Nations in January.
Pardew confirmed there was no significant long-term damage sustained despite his broken thighbone, the common name for the femur, before suggesting that Souare could yet appear for the Eagles again before the end of the season.
'There is nothing in the engineering of the knee and ankle that's a problem so we think five to six months he should be up and running around again,' Pardew said.