Schalke's highly-rated teenage striker Breel Embolo has been ruled out of action for four to six months after undergoing surgery on a broken anklesustained in the 1-1 draw withAugsburg on Saturday.
The news will come as a huge blow to Schalke, who paid€20m plus add-ons for the 19-year-old earlier this year.
The injury came as a result of an awful challenge fromAugsburg defender Konstantinos Stafylidis, who has since apologised for the tackle.
"I want to apologise to Breel Embolo and FC Schalke 04," the Greece international wrote onInstagram.
OFFICIAL: Schalke have confirmed that Breel Embolo has undergone surgery on his ankle and will be out of action for 4-6 months. pic.twitter.com/gaGWQPi74C
"My idea is to always play aggressive and go for the ball, but I have never injured any player on purpose.
"I have big respect for my opponents and football. That is the reason why I never play unfairly. I wish you a fast recovery because football needs players with your quality."
Very unfortunate news: Breel #Embolo will be out for some time with a broken ankle, sustained in today's game. Best wishes to Breel. #S04
Despite inflicting a gruelling injury on the young forward,Stafylidis somehow got away with only a yellow-card, much to the frustration of the travelling Schalke support.
Embolo has impressed following a summer switch from Swiss club FC Basel, scoring three goals in all competitionsbefore being injured.
His side will be hoping for a return to action sometime in the new-year, although it is feared that the Swiss strikermay miss the remainder of the season.
Embolo came close to signing for Jose Mourinho's Manchester United in a£15m dealearlier this summer, only for Schalke to swoop in and sign him before the Red Devils had a chance.