Leicester City will be without James Maddison for Sunday's Premier League clash against Arsenal.
Foxes manager Brendan Rodgers confirmed the massive injury blow during his pre-match press conference on Friday afternoon as he must now once again devise a plan without the playmaker.
Furthermore, Leicester have five other first-team players unavailable for the big game with Arsenal at the King Power Stadium as they look to bounce back from Thursday's surprise defeat against Slavia Prague which ended their participation in this season's Europa League.
This list includes Wesley Fofana, Ayoze Perez, Dennis Praet, and Wes Morgan, while James Justin will not play again this season because of an anterior cruciate ligament injury.
"We’ve got the same squad available, so the likes of James Maddison, Ayo Perez are still not available," Rodgers told the club's official website on Friday afternoon. "They continue to be out, so it’s the same squad.
"We’re seeing how he [Perez] is over the next few days. He’s obviously had that strain and there’s no real timeline on it with Ayo.
"We’re just waiting to see how he feels and how he reacts. We’re hoping at some period next week he can get out there and join the squad."
"He [Fofana] had a hamstring strain. He’s recovering really well. He’s been out on the field over these last couple of days and should rejoin the training group next week, which is great news for us."
But the biggest news is the absence of Maddison who aggravated a hip injury in last weekend's win over Aston Villa that caused him to miss the 2-0 loss against Slavia Prague.
The 24-year-old's absence is certainly a major blow for the Foxes as he had been in great form prior to the setback.
With five goals in his last nine Premier League appearances, Maddison would have posed a big threat to Mikel Arteta side's chances of leaving the King Power with all three points and Rodgers admits he's unsure as to when the midfielder will return.
"It’s obviously a very frustrating time," Rodgers added. "He was in great form. He’s a real catalyst for our team with his consistency.
"Having been out in the early part of the season, his consistency has developed and he's been absolutely brilliant, so it’s a very, very frustrating time for him.
"The injury he has isn’t time driven. He had an operation at the end of last season. He’s got a little issue with his tendon just above that.
"We’re hoping he’ll be back sooner rather than later, but we can’t put a timeline on it as it’s just about how he feels and how he can recover over the next few weeks."
