Blackburn midfielder Steven Reid has been rocked by the news he faces four months on the sidelines after being diagnosed with a stress fracture of the back.
Reid suffered the injury during the Republic of Ireland's Euro 2008 qualifying defeat to Germany in Stuttgart at the start of September and has not kicked a ball since.
The 25-year-old had been to see a chiropractor in the hope of clearing up the problem but Reid will now not return until the middle of February at the earliest.