Borussia Dortmund defender Kevin Grosskreutz has been ruled out for six weeks with a hamstring injury.
The 26-year-old sustained the damage during Wednesday evening's 1-0 Bundesliga loss at home to Augsburg, limping off after an hour to receive further attention at the Westfalenstadion.
Grosskreutz's lengthy absence, confirmed by the club on Twitter on Thursday, comes as a further blow to coach Jurgen Klopp, whose side sit bottom of the table having collected just 16 points from 19 matches.
As well as a cluster of Bundesliga encounters, the Germany international will sit out at least the first leg of Dortmund's Champions League last-16 clash with Juventus later this month.
"We need to address the whole thing with courage and not let it distract us from our game," Klopp said, via the club's Twitter feed.
