Ciaran Clark was forced off with injury in the humbling defeat at Arsenal and will be a "big miss" to Newcastle United.
That's the view of pundit and former Aston Villa team-mate Darren Bent, who admits he fears the worst after seeing the Republic of Ireland international leave the Emirates Stadium on crutches.
Clark has established himself as a first-team regular under Steve Bruce having struggled for minutes under Rafa Benitez last season.
The defender has scored twice and been an almost constant pick alongside Federico Fernandez and Jamaal Lascelles at the back.
However, the 30-year-old was forced off in the 83rd minute of the 4-0 defeat after an ugly collision with Bukayo Saka.
The extent of the injury is not yet known, but United are braced for another long-term setback as Bruce admitted Clark's ankle did not look "great".
Speaking to Football Insider, former Sunderland striker Bent labelled Clark as a "pure defender" who will be a huge miss for the Magpies - despite the plethora of options Bruce can call upon at the heart of defence.
Bent said: "I think Ciaran Clark, he’s going to be a big, big miss. You hope his ankle injury is not too bad but for someone like him, to leave the stadium in a ankle boot, you fear the worse.
“He’s not really somebody, unless it’s bad, he’d just try and get through it. I like Clarky a lot, I was with him at Aston Villa and he was one of those guys in training where you were just like: ‘Oh my god, will you just give me a break?’
“He just never wanted to concede any goals, he wanted to put his body on the line. As a pure defender, he’s one of the very, very best. He likes defending, he likes putting his body on the line, likes the ball hitting him in the face.”
