Manchester United defender Eric Bailly is expecting to be sidelined for up to two months with a knee injury.
Sunday's 4-0 humiliation at Chelsea was compounded by the impressive 22-year-old being forced off after 52 minutes at Stamford Bridge.
United boss Jose Mourinho spoke of his fear in the post-match press conference that Bailly had suffered serious knee ligament damage.
The Portuguese said his defender felt it was "really bad" and the Ivory Coast international has now confirmed he will be forced to sit out for around two months.
"I wanted to thank you for all the messages of support that I received since the injury," he posted on Facebook.
"I hope to be able to play again for United and The Elephants before 2 months, God willing. Thanks for always being there!"
Bailly is reported to have suffered lateral knee ligament damage, with that initial time frame seeing him miss up to 13 matches should United progress past Manchester City in Wednesday's EFL Cup tie.
The frantic festive period then follows before the Ivory Coast international heads to the African Nations Cup in early January.
AAP