Wednesday 26 September 2012 15:34, UK
Bournemouth defender Simon Francis is expected to be out for six weeks after damaging his anterior cruciate ligament.
Full-back Francis suffered the injury in the draw with Brentford last week, and saw a consultant in London on Tuesday afternoon to discover the extent of the problem. "Simon felt his knee in the Brentford game. There was no impact, he intercepted the ball with his right foot and squatted on his standing leg. He flicked out of it and he felt it give," Cherries physio Steve Hard told the club's official website. "We were very concerned about it and we had him scanned the next day. It revealed an anterior cruciate ligament strain and that he had also damaged the back of his knee as well. "The results of this were very good and better than anticipated. The surgeon looked and the scans and examined Simon and said there was no need for an operation and that it should settle naturally with rehabilitation. "Timeframe-wise, we are looking six weeks from the injury until he is back training."