Everton have ruled out Ross Barkley for eight weeks with knee injury.
Barkley will miss the next eight weeks following a training ground collision with Gareth Barry.
The 20-year-old has his knee in a protective brace but manager Roberto Martinez believes he can be thankful he is not awaiting an operation.
"I've seen that situation cause an injury that is a full rupture, which then requires surgery and is a far more serious injury. Ross only has a partial tear," he said.
"He is fortunate really, yes, it could have been a lot worse. If that action happened earlier in pre-season it would have been a full rupture.
"It is a big blow. Ross is not replaceable."
