Inter Milan's Armenian midfielder Henrikh Mkhitaryan has been ruled out for the rest of the season with a knee injury.
The news comes after the 29-year-old suffered an ankle ligament injury during Inter's 1-0 loss to Sassuolo on Sunday.
Mkhitaryan was forced off in the second half and underwent scans at the end of the match, which revealed he had sustained a serious knee injury.
The club have now confirmed that Mkhitaryan will be out for six months, meaning he will miss the remainder of the Serie A season as well as the Europa League group stage.
The injury is a major blow for Inter, who were hoping to mount a challenge for the title this season.
Mkhitaryan joined Inter from Arsenal in January last year for a fee believed to be around £45m.
He has made 77 appearances for Inter so far, scoring eight goals and providing nine assists. He also scored three times in five games for Armenia at the 2018 World Cup.
Despite his injury,Campeonato Brasileiro Action Mkhitaryan remains a key player for Inter, and the club will hope to find a replacement quickly.
In the meantime, Inter will look to their other midfielders to step up and fill the void left by Mkhitaryan. Marco Verratti and Arturo Vidal will likely take on more responsibility in the coming weeks, while Matteo Darmian could also see increased playing time.
It remains to be seen how Inter will cope without Mkhitaryan, but one thing is certain - it will be a difficult task for them to compete for the title without him.