Finidi George will be out until Christmas after suffering a depressed fracture in the tenth minute of today's game with Fulham at Craven Cottage.
Finidi clashed with Alain Goma as the two went for a corner from the left. He received treatment but shortly afterwards was a led away and replaced with Marcus Stewart.
Manager George Burley said afterwards: "He'll be out for a couple of months. He went in for a header amd was very brave. It was accidental, but it is very sad for us."
Burley added: "We handed Fulham the first goal and that was disappointing. We were patchy and there were times when we were getting on top and creating chances. We knew it would be a tough match. Fulham got behind the ball and battled away to get a point, but when we got the equaliser we were looking to go and win the game. Winning games does breed confidence, but we're in a very tough league and expectations are high because we had an unbelievable season last year, finishing fifth."