Shane Duffy has been ruled out of Ireland's crucial World Cup qualifier against Wales later this month.
Late in Brighton's 3-0 loss away to Nottingham Forest on Saturday, Duffy limped out of the action with a foot injury.
After the game manager Chris Hughton said the player would be assessed over the next 48 hours.
We don’t know [how serious the injury is]. He is fairly sore.
We will obviously assess that one over the next couple of days.
Confirmation has arrived this morning that Duffy faces at least six weeks out, with the injury confirmed as a broken metatarsal. Hughton estimates that Duffy will miss at least six weeks, a huge blow to Duffy, Brighton and Ireland.
If fit, the 25-year-old would almost certainly have continued his centre-back partnership with Ciaran Clark against Wales.
Another of Martin O'Neill's defensive options, Derby's Richard Keogh, missed both of his side's two most recent games, a 1-0 defeat to Blackburn and a 2-1 win against Barnsley.
If Duffy and Keogh are both injured, John O'Shea would most likely partner Ciaran Clark in defence for Ireland.
The absentees for Ireland are beginning to stack up: Robbie Brady is suspended, whole Jon Walters is expected to miss the game through injury.
Photo by Stephen McCarthy/Sportsfile
