Cardiff City talisman Kieffer Moore has torn his hamstring and will be out for a considerable length of time.
The Bluebirds' top goalscorer, who has netted eight times and was in white-hot form prior to the injury, limped off just before the hour mark during the 2-0 defeat by Swansea City on Saturday and many feared it looked a nasty one.
While City boss Neil Harris had hoped it was just a tweak from undertaking such an unusual movement, the Bluebirds' worst fears were realised after the Wales striker underwent a scan.
"Kieffer will be out for a period of time. He has got a hamstring strain from the effort on goal," Harris said.
"At first I thought it might have been a cramp in the hamstring and just disappointment he didn’t score.
"He has had a scan and has got a tear in his hamstring and will be out until the New Year."
There is no doubting that will come as a big blow to Cardiff City, who will be without their towering striker for the visit of Birmingham City on Wednesday as they attempt to bounce back from the disappointment of a South Wales derby defeat.
While Harris was coy on an exact time frame for Moore's return, he was certain that the Wales international would miss at least the next five matches, with the FA Cup clash against Nottingham Forest on January 9 a tentative target.
Harris thinks the injury was not simply down to the sheer volume of club games Moore has played, but the lack of respite he had during the international break, when his Bluebirds colleagues will have been afforded the opportunity to get away from it all for a while.
However, Harris believes this might well be a sliding doors moment for fellow striker Robert Glatzel, who has recently shown glimpses of his qualities in front of goal, with well-taken strikes against Huddersfield Town and Stoke City in the last few weeks.
"He has been in great form this season," the manager said of Moore. "Most recently, as well, he has been pivotal to the four-game winning run we had.
"But, as always, it becomes an opportunity for someone else, like Robert Glatzel for example, who has been waiting in the wings and he has made an impact when he has come off the bench in the past few weeks.
"If the opportunity comes his way I am sure he will be delighted to get it."
With Lee Tomlin out until at least the middle of January, Isaac Vassell also still a long-term absentee owing to his protracted quad injury and Junior Hoilett also a doubt for the clash with Birmingham City, the goalscoring onus will no doubt fall on Glatzel's shoulders now.
The German striker spoke candidly after scoring against Huddersfield Town in the Bluebirds' 3-0 win earlier this month about how he loved being at Cardiff City but was disappointed on a personal level not to have contributed more.
Harris believes now is as good a time as any for him to lay down a marker.
"Bobby will be the first to admit, he interviewed after Huddersfield and said he loves it here but he has not quite hit the levels he wanted to hit," he added.
"When he talks about that... Robert is a goalscorer, he wants to score a goal every week and if he doesn't score a goal then he is gutted he hasn’t scored. To me, there is a lot more to a player than just scoring goals.
"Robert has been honest enough to say that he has still not hit the levels on the consistent run that he wants to and now possibly, depending on team selection, that opportunity comes for him.
"He has not got extra pressure on his shoulders, he has just got to go out and play and enjoy himself. We all appreciate that there’s more to come from Robert Glatzel and let's hope we see more."
