Sporting Lisbon and Portugal midfielder William Carvalho will be sidelined for three months with a stress fracture in his tibia, virtually ruling him out of a transfer to Arsenal this summer.
Carvalho, 23, impressed for Portugal at the under-21 European Championships in the Czech Republic as they reached the final -- although missed the vital penalty as Sweden won in a penalty shootout.
And the combative midfielder has been heavily linked with a move to Arsenal as Arsene Wenger looks to bolster his team in the centre of the pitch.
William Carvalho lesiona-se na selecção sub-21 e pára de 10 a 12 semanas: https://t.co/3qbu5eEXV9 pic.twitter.com/xcaZCKdKBF
- Sporting CP (@Sporting_CP) July 14, 2015
However, Sporting confirmed on their Twitter account that Carvalho would be out for 10-12 weeks after being diagnosed with a stress fracture of the tibia.
Carvalho reportedly has a buyout clause of £25 million in his contract, but last month new manager Jorge Jesus revealed that the midfielder would not be leaving the club this summer.