Crystal Palace have been rocked by a serous injury blow to attacking-midfield ace Eberechi Eze ahead of this evening's clash with Arsenal at Selhurst Park.
According to a report by The Athletic, the 22-year-old, who joined the Eagles from Championship club Queens Park Rangers last summer, has suffered a serous Achilles injury and could be sidelined well into the start of next season.
The England Under-21 international suffered the heartbreaking blow during training ahead of this evening's tussle with the Gunners and is, according to the report, poised to see a specialist today to discover the extent of the damage.
It is thought that surgery will almost certainly be required for the much-loved youngster, who has netted four goals in 34 Premier League appearances this season.
Yesterday, Palace boss Roy Hodgson, who has confirmed he will be stepping down as manager at Selhurst Park at the end of the season, confirmed that Eze had picked up an injury and would face a late fitness test ahead of tonight's game.
However, the former England boss would not be drawn on what the injury was, highlighting that he was not aware of its severity.
"We've got some team news, I suppose," Hodgson said on Tuesday. "We've got a couple of players that we need to assess for the game tomorrow.
"That's going to be Scott Dann and Eberechi Eze. We're going to have to assess them before the game. I'm hopeful that they'll make it but we'll have to wait and see.
"Apart from that really, the only two who are definitely out of the picture are Connor Wickham and Mamadou Sakho."
As outlined above, at the time of Hodgson speaking to the media he was not aware of the severity of Eze's injury, meaning more has come to light overnight.
The blow of losing him is a catastrophic one. Not only has he been one of Palace's best players this season, but he is also one of just a few that are actually under contract ahead of next season, meaning the club may now feel slightly more pressure ahead of what is most certainly going to be a crucial transfer window.
Since joining Palace from QPR in a £16million switch, the attacking-midfield starlet has racked up a total of 36 appearances in all competitions, scoring four goals and registering six assists.
