Wigan Athletic ace facing possible season KO - 'I'm gutted for the boy...'
Shaun Maloney admits he is 'gutted' for Tyrese Francois, with fears the Wigan Athletic midfielder could even miss the rest of the season with ankle ligament damage.
The Australian Under-23 international has endured a largely frustrating time since joining from Premier League Fulham in the summer.
After recovering from an injury he had when he signed, Francois finally made his debut at Carlisle last month in the Bristol Street Motors Trophy.
Having nailed down a position in the engine room, he played in seven of the next eight games, before limping off just before half-time at Barnsley on Saturday.
And in the aftermath of Tuesday night's 2-1 victory over Northampton Town, Maloney delivered a bleak prognosis about a player he has described as being 'a revelation' during his short spell in the side.
"Tyrese has an ankle injury, and I'm gutted for the boy," he said. "We're probably looking at between three and five months...certainly not any shorter than three.
"We'll find out for sure in the next week or so, hopefully it's nearer the three than the five.
"He's been brilliant for us, whether it's as a '6' or further up the field...he's been a revelation, and it's a real shame.
"It happened when he went to block a shot, it jarred his ankle, and there's damage to the ligaments.
"The left side had been brilliant, and it's a real blow to lose him as well as Luke Chambers."
Maloney’s ‘worst-case’ scenario of five months out would go all the way through to the penultimate league game of the campaign against Blackpool on April 26.
Latics’ final game is against Northampton the following weekend.