Middlesbrough were dealt a major blow as striker Will Lankshear missed the club's 2-0 defeat against Wrexham in the Championship due to injury.
Joining Boro from Tottenham Hotspur for an initial £10m that could rise to a club-record £20m, expectations were understandably high upon his Riverside arrival.
The centre forward has lived up to the sizeable prize tag, and more, scoring an impressive 13 goals in as many Championship appearances at the start of the 2026/27 campaign.
He was absent from the matchday squad for the first time of the season when Kim Hellberg's side made the trip to the Racecourse Ground to face Wrexham on Wednesday night, where they lost 2-0.
We take a look at when Lankshear could be in line to return for the odds-on promotion favourites.
When is Will Lankshear expected to return from injury?
Lankshear is currently a doubt for Boro's away fixture against Watford on Saturday afternoon.
Hellberg provided an update on the striker's fitness in the aftermath of his side's 2-0 loss against Wrexham: "Will was due to be in the starting line-up for this game on Tuesday, but could not play in the end. That meant we had to change things late.
“I don’t know exactly how he is right now. I still hope he might play on Saturday at Watford, but we will have to see. If not, we then have the international break and he should be fine. It’s nothing serious.”
The Northern Echo reported that Lankshear has been unable to take part in full training since being forced off in the closing stages of Boro's 3-0 victory over Charlton Athletic, where the striker scored twice.
Hellberg claimed that the 21-year-old was suffering with cramp at the time, but it's since come to light that he is dealing with a minor muscular injury.
Should the centre forward fail in his bid to return to fitness this weekend, he is all but certain to be back in the Boro fold when they welcome Bristol City on 21st November after the conclusion of the international break.
