Celtic defender Christopher Jullien could miss “six to nine months” after returning home for treatment on a knee injury.
The 27-year-old limped out of the Parkhead side’s 3-0 win over Dundee United at the end of December, but travelled to Dubai as part of The Hoops controversial winter training camp and tested positive for COVID-19 on his return.
Manager Neil Lennon previously said the problem was likely to delay his comeback by “three or four months” but the situation has now worsened, with Jullien unlikely to play again until after the start of next season.
The Celtic boss confirmed he has now flown home to France in order to fully recover from the issue.
Lennon had already confirmed another long-term injury concern, winger James Forrest, had suffered a setback in his return from a fractured ankle.
Winger Mohamed Elyounoussi and defender Shane Duffy are both doubts for the trip to Ross County on Sunday evening but will be assessed ahead of kick off.
Celtic cut the deficit to Rangers at the top of the Scottish Premiership to 15 points after edging out Aberdeen in Glasgow on Wednesday.
When asked about Jullien’s return in his press conference ahead of the visit to Dingwall, Lennon said: “[He’ll be out] maybe six to nine months and he's gone back to do some rehab in France."
“He's out for a long period of time.”
