Brighton & Hove Albion have been dealt an injury blow on the eve of their debut Premier League campaign with the news that midfielder Beram Kayal could be out of action for up to three months.
The Israel international, who featured 20 times in the Seagulls' Championship-winning campaign, limped out of Saturday's 3-2 friendly defeat to Atletico Madrid with a leg complaint.
Brighton boss Chris Hughton has now confirmed that Kayal sustained a small fracture in his fibia, keeping him on the sidelines until at least mid-October.
Speaking to reporters on Wednesday afternoon, the Albion chief said: "It was operated on today and we expect him to be out for a period of 10-12 weeks. The good news is that it was a clean injury and the operation went very, very well, so we don't expect any complications."
Hughton was quick to move for a replacement, signing Davy Propper from PSV Eindhoven on Monday for a club-record fee of around £6m.
