Christian Atsu's Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) campaign has ended prematurely due to a hamstring injury and the Newcastle United winger looks set to return to Tyneside for further assessment.
The 27-year-old was forced off in the 15th minute of Ghana's 0-0 draw with Cameroon on Saturday and, following medical examinations in Egypt, he is expected to be withdrawn from his country's squad.
It will come as a bitter blow to Atsu, who has repeatedly stated in recent weeks that he was confident Ghana would lift the AFCON trophy - something they could still do without the United winger, although the Black Stars currently find themselves second in Group F and with their qualification to the knock-out stages still in the balance after two rounds of fixtures.
The Magpies' medical team have been in contact with the Ghanaian staff about the best course of treatment, but reports in Ghana insist the injury is "severe enough" to rule Atsu out of the remainder of the tournament and he is therefore expected to fly back to England soon.
Atsu's injury adds to the mounting issues on Tyneside, with the managerless Magpies also searching for a new coach and yet to make a signing so far during the summer window.
Academy coaches Ben Dawson and Neil Redfearn are among the candidates to take caretaker charge of pre-season training when the players reconvene on Thursday, and Atsu could be back at Benton sooner than expected.
However, given that Ghana's medical team believe Atsu will miss the remainder of the tournament - and, with the final not until July 19, if the Black Stars reach that stage - then the former Chelsea winger could miss a large portion of pre-season training and there must now be doubts about whether he will be fit in time for the Magpies' Premier League opener against Arsenal on Sunday, August 11.
Once Atsu does return to Tyneside , Newcastle's medical team will assess him first hand and then determine the best course of rehabilitation going forward.
