Having been withdrawn at half time in Aston Villa's 2-2 draw with Brentford, the extent of Matteo Ruggeri's injury has now been confirmed.
The Italian, who had performed well in the first half of the match, was withdrawn at half time with a suspected hamstring issue and has not been available in either of Aston Villa's matches since.
With Ian Maatsen already sidelined, Ruggeri's injury left the Villans without a recognised left back for their 6-0 UEFA Champions League win over Fenerbahce and their 1-0 win over Newcastle at St James' Park.
Before the November international break, the Villans still have six fixtures in all competitions, as they look to compete on multiple fronts early in the campaign.
As we head into a busy part of the season, let's take a look at when Matteo Ruggeri is expected to return for Aston Villa.
When is Matteo Ruggeri expected to return from injury?
Ahead of his side's UEFA Champions League contest against Norwegian champions Viking FK, Unai Emery has confirmed that Matteo Ruggeri will be out for "more or less two months".
If that timeline is accurate, Ruggeri would miss up to 14 Villa's matches before recovering from the injury, returning to action for the home Premier League match against Leeds United on 26th December.
This would also rule him out of contention for international selection, having made his Italy debut in the previous block of Nations League fixtures.
The news is somewhat softened for the Spaniard, with Dutch left back Maatsen having returned to training this week, however it remains to be seen whether he will be risked on Wednesday night.
One beneficiary of the injury to Ruggeri is summer signing Taylor Harwood-Bellis, who has been added to Aston Villa's UEFA Champions League squad, as a direct replacement for the Italian.
UEFA rules state that a player can be replaced in the List A squad should they be injured for 60 days or more, with Ruggeri's injury meeting that threshold.
As a result, Harwood-Bellis, who has made just one start since moving to the Midlands from Southampton in the summer, is available for selection in the remainder of Villa's UEFA Champions League league phase matches.
