Monday 25 January 2016 17:48, UK
Stoke City defender Ryan Shawcross has been ruled out of action for up to a month after suffering a back injury during the 3-0 defeat to Leicester City on Saturday.
Shawcross lasted just 30 minutes of the game at the King Power Stadium before being forced off - with the score still goalless - and manager Mark Hughes confirmed the extent of the problem in his press conference ahead of Tuesday's Capital One Cup semi-final, second-leg against Liverpool.
"Thankfully it is not a recurrence of the back injury which required surgery [over the summer] so that is a positive," said Hughes.
"Unfortunately, the negative is that he has soft muscle damage and at the moment it is looking like it will probably be three to four weeks I would think.
"It was certainly detrimental to our performance on Saturday."
Shawcross' absence is a big blow for Hughes, whose side follow their trip to Anfield with a visit of Crystal Palace in the FA Cup on Saturday before facing Manchester United in the Premier League next Tuesday.
The Potters captain is then likely to miss games against Everton and Bournemouth, with the home clash against Aston Villa after the international break on February 27 a realistic target for his return.
Stoke trail 1-0 heading into the second-leg against Liverpool, but Hughes is hopeful of having Marko Arnautovic available after he missed Saturday with a hamstring injury.
Hughes said scans had shown there was "just a little bit of tightness" rather than any major damage and that he would make sure the Austria international, having trained on Monday, was "primed and ready to go" for Tuesday night.
