Winger Fofana, 20, was stretchered off in distress after his ankle twisted in gruesome fashion under a challenge by Strasbourg's Ismael Doukoure during Sunday's game between the sides. Lyon described the injury as a "serious sprain of the right ankle" and said Fofana would "very probably need surgery which would keep him out for several months".

Doukoure was shown a red card for the challenge following a VAR check, and Lyon went on to win the game 2-1 thanks to a late goal by Fofana's replacement, Afonso Moreira. The win left Lyon fourth in Ligue 1 with 18 points, just two points behind leaders Paris Saint-Germain after nine matches. They are also one of only three teams with the maximum nine points after three games in the league phase of the Europa League.

However, losing Fofana until well into the new year represents a major handicap for a club who were relying heavily on his talent after having to sell star forwards Rayan Cherki and Georges Mikautadze during the summer.

Captain Alexandre Lacazette also left when his contract expired, and Lyon's serious financial difficulties meant few replacements were brought in - the seven-time French champions were condemned to relegation to Ligue 2 due to their debts before overturning that punishment on appeal.

Fofana, who has appeared in Belgium's last four World Cup qualifiers, has two goals in 12 appearances this season for Lyon and scored 11 times in 41 matches in the last campaign. He was linked in the close season with moves to Everton and Bayern Munich but opted to stay at Lyon.

Malick Fofana

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