Shane Long is facing weeks on the sidelines after suffering suspected fractured ribs in the defeat against Crystal Palace.

Daily Echo:

Long had only been on the pitch for 14 minutes as a second half sub when he collided with a Palace defender and had to be helped from the field.

He has been taken to hospital in an ambulance to have the injury fully assessed, but all the early indications are that he has suffered fractured ribs, which means he will join the likes of Toby Alderweireld, Morgan Schneiderlin and Victor Wanyama on the sidelines.

“I spoke to the doctor and he thought he will have fractured one or two ribs and that’s very painful,” reported Ronald Koeman, who will now consider dipping into the transfer market in the next week.

“It’s a pity because we don’t have that number of players to go with all the injuries that we have.

“I don’t know (how long he will be out for). Normally three, four, five weeks.”

This afternoon he tweeted a picture of what appears to be him in a hospital bed.