Everton’s £25m summer signing Jean-Philippe Gbamin has been ruled out until January after having surgery on a thigh injury.
Gbamin, 24, has been out of action since August.
The Ivorian figured as a substitute against Crystal Palace on the Premier League’s opening weekend, then started the win against Watford on 17 August.
But he broke down in training before the 2-0 defeat at Aston Villa six days later.
The midfielder, signed from Mainz on 2 August, was back in light training before Everton’s last league game, a 1-0 defeat at Burnley on 5 October, but suffered another setback and has now had an operation in France.
It is a significant setback for under-pressure Everton manager Marco Silva as well as the Ivory Coast international, who had been brought in to fill the gap left by Idrissa Gueye’s departure to Paris St-Germain.
