Aberdeen manager Derek McInnes has confirmed Scott Wright will be out for six weeks.
The playmaker has been sidelined with a groin problem which has now been confirmed as a double hernia.
It means that Wright will get surgery next week and won’t be available until mid-January.
McInnes confirmed: “Scott went to see a specialist in Manchester on Thursday and unfortunately our fears were confirmed that he has a double hernia that requires surgery.
“It is keyhole surgery now and different to back in the day.
“Scott will get that operation next week and will be out for four to five weeks from then.
“So six weeks from now.”
Aberdeen are already without Marley Watkins for the same length of time with a hamstring injury.
He has since returned to Bristol City as his loan is set to expire in January.
There has been something of an injury crisis at Pittodrie in recent weeks, with the likes of Ross McCrorie, Lewis Ferguson and Dylan McGeouch also out.
McInnes admitted this week: "We are just trying to navigate the situation at the minute.
"We have a cup game to try and get through and then we start to get some players back.
"Hopefully Jonny (Hayes) will be back after that, for the league game against St Mirren. Hopefully we will have Lewis Ferguson and Connor McLennan back for the league game.
"But for the cup game we just need to try and patch these boys up again. It will be three games in six days for a lot of boys who have not had a lot of football of late."
