Melbourne Victory defender Adrian Leijer will be sidelined for a month - including the club's key Asian Champions League (ACL) qualifier - after being diagnosed with facial injuries.
Leijer, the club captain from 2011 to the start of this season, was struck in the face by a stray boot just minutes after coming on as a substitute in Victory's 3-1 A-League win against Central Coast Mariners.
The club initially expected Leijer to recover quickly but scans on Tuesday morning revealed a fractured eye socket, cheekbone and nose.
The injuries will keep Leijer out of a crucial month beginning with Saturday night's date with Muangthong United in Geelong for a spot in the ACL.
As Victory cruised to their win in Gosford, it was only the cramping Scott Galloway that necessitated Leijer's introduction so late in the match.
Speaking before the extent of the injuries were known, the 18-year-old right-back said he felt bad for Leijer - who was also withdrawn with concussion in Victory's 5-0 Australia Day rout.
"The poor guy's had some bad luck - but it's just one of those things. It can happen to anyone at any time," he said.
Galloway said Muangthong were an unknown force but he respected the Thai side ahead of intensive opposition research for the knockout tie.
"We're going to start doing work on them this week with video sessions," he said.
"We can't draw it - there's no way. We can't lose it - there's no way we're doing that either."
Leijer's unavailability will cause headaches for coach Kevin Muscat for the ACL match, already without creative attacker Gui Finkler due to squad restrictions.
Victory are likely to pair Pablo Contreras and Nick Ansell in defence for the one-off tie, alongside full-backs Adama Traore and Galloway.
Kostas Barbarouses, returning from an ankle injury, trained strongly on Tuesday and should also be available.
Leijer's layoff is set to extend to matches against Adelaide United, Melbourne Heart and Central Coast, all at AAMI Park.
