Burnley's Barnes may miss most of next season

LONDON (Reuters) - Burnley, relegated from the Premier League, fear striker Ashley Barnes will miss most of next season after becoming their fourth player to suffer a cruciate knee injury in little more than a year.

(Reuters)

The 25-year-old suffered the injury in the final game of the season last weekend, which Burnley won 1-0 against Aston Villa.

He will have an operation next week, the club said on their website.

Striker Sam Vokes, defender Kevin Long and midfielder Dean Marney all have all suffered the same fate in the last 14 months.

"To say this is bad luck is an understatement," Burnley's manager Sean Dyche told the website.

"They have been innocuous incidents that have ended up with four serious injuries and it’s an incredible misfortune."

(Reporting by Steve Tongue; editing by Amlan Chakraborty)