West Bromwich Albion's Steven Reid has been ruled out for at least six weeks with a knee injury.
Di Matteo faces further defensive problems ahead of Fulham game
West Bromwich Albion have suffered a further defensive blow after Steven Reid was ruled out for at least six weeks with a knee injury.
Reid suffered a cartilage tear during Saturday's 2-1 defeat by Manchester United and was forced off midway through the second half.
Scans have now confirmed the extent of the damage and Roberto Di Matteo lamented the injury to Reid, who had started at right-back against United.
"It's really bad news for Reidy," Di Matteo told the club's
official website.
"He is an important member of our squad and was playing well until he was forced off. The big thing about Reidy is that he offers cover for so many positions.
"He's likely to be out for a minimum of six weeks and all we can do is wish him well with his surgery and a speedy recovery."
Positive
Di Matteo has received a boost after Pablo Ibanez's hamstring problem proved not to be serious, although the centre-half is still likely to miss Tuesday's trip to Fulham.
He added: "Pablo's hamstring was playing up on Saturday and he couldn't continue but it looks as though we caught the problem early as the scan results are very positive.
"We'll just have to assess him on a day-to-day basis."
Reid and Ibanez will join Gabriel Tamas and Jonas Olsson on the sidelines for the game at Craven Cottage, although Gonzalo Jara will return after suspension.
Di Matteo continued: "We're going to be even thinner on the ground than we already were in defence tonight but we're just going to have to pull together and give it our best shot."
