Bristol City left-back Jay Dasilva has been ruled out until mid September with a "small tibia fracture".
The defender, who signed on a permanent deal from Chelsea this summer, was not named in to take on Birmingham City and within a few minutes head coach Lee Johnson confirmed why.
Dasilva has been given a recovery time of an estimated five weeks which means he may not return until the away fixture against Stoke City on September 14, at the earliest.
It is unclear how and when the England Under-21 international sustained the injury but given he completed 90 minutes against Leeds United it's likely to have been caused during training this week.
Tommy Rowe took Dasilva's place in the City starting XI against Birmingham but the 30-year-old is the only recognised left-back in the first-team squad and it's not his preferred position having spent most of last season in defensive midfield for Doncaster.
Bristol City sold Lloyd Kelly to Bournemouth in May while promising full-back Cam Pring has been loaned to Walsall for the season.
The 21-year-old can't be recalled from the Bescot Stadium but Callum O'Dowda could deputise in the position, should anything happen to Rowe, but the Republic of Ireland winger was not even named in the 18-man matchday squad at St Andrew's.
O'Dowda continues to refuse to sign a new contract at Bristol City after a transfer to Fulham broke down earlier in the summer and with less than 12 months remaining on his deal may have to be sold.
The transfer window in Scotland remains open until September 2, which is one avenue that could be explored, however Dasilva's injury may now force Johnson into a rethink and keep O'Dowda at least until January, further reducing his transfer value.
