Callum Paterson will miss the rest of the season due to needing ankle surgery, confirmed Cardiff City manager Neil Warnock.

The Scotland international sustained the injury playing against San Marino and joins defender Sol Bamba in sitting out the remainder of the campaign.

Paterson and Bamba are Cardiff's joint leading scorers - along with Victor Camarasa and Bobby Reid - in the Premier League this season with four goals apiece, though their long-term absences are a blow to the Bluebirds' survival hopes.

Matthew Connolly is also out for Sunday's home game against Chelsea, with Warnock left to lament the state of his squad after the international break.

"He's having an operation on Monday and should be out until pre-season. A big blow," Warnock said of Paterson's setback. "The same day, Connolly was just coming back training and he dislocated his ankle.

"It's no good saying it's not a blow. Contrary to what was said before the Scottish game, I never said anything to [Scotland manager] Alex [McLeish] about him [Paterson] not playing on the plastic pitch.

"But he had such a bad injury with his knee I think they spoke between themselves. But the second game was a disaster for us, but it's one of those things."

March 27, 2019

Warnock, however, was annoyed with Iceland for seemingly going back on their word regarding the use of midfielder Aron Gunnarsson in games against Andorra and France.

"With Iceland, I was disappointed," Warnock added. "I was originally told Aron wasn’t going to play on the plastic pitch for the first game then he played for over an hour... and then he plays for 93 minutes against France.

"I can't understand that at all. I know it's a new manager [Erik Hamren] and you want to do well, but when you're 3-0 down surely you can substitute a player?

"I bent over backwards for Iceland last season to allow him to go the World Cup and he had three months this season when he was out and we had to build him back up. I was disappointed with the Iceland manager and I'll be speaking to him.

"That doesn’t matter now as Aron is leaving at the end of the season. But we've been treating him, he's not played two games and all of a sudden we've got Chelsea and Man City in the space of three days. I just thought it was pure selfishness and I'm so disappointed in Iceland for doing that."

Callum Paterson

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