Kevin Schade will be ruled out of action for the next few months after suffering an adductor injury during the warm-up before Brentford's last Premier League match against Everton.
The German forward, 21, will undergo surgery this week as he becomes the latest name to join Brentford's injury list.
“He will be out for months,” head coach Thomas Frank told the club's official website.
“It’s a blow, of course it is. He’s a player we have big expectations for, and he was starting to show some of his fantastic abilities with a goal against Crystal Palace.
“But this is football; this happens. There will be challenges that we have to work our way through, and we will do that.”
We're all with you, @kevinschade_ 🙏
— Brentford FC (@BrentfordFC) September 26, 2023
You'll come back stronger 💪 pic.twitter.com/YVayCL07MD
Schade initially joined in January 2023 on loan from Freiburg before signing permanently this summer for a club-record transfer fee.
He's played 23 times in the Premier League for the Bees, scoring one goal and providing an assist.
Schade's goal against Palace on 26 August was later nominated for August's Budweiser Goal of the Month.
In addition to Schade being ruled out, Frank confirmed that he has several players unavailable through either injury or suspension.
Ben Mee will be out for a few weeks with a "muscle injury" and Mikkel Damsgaard is going to see a knee specialist this week.
Those names are joined on the sidelines by Shandon Baptiste, Josh Dasilva and Rico Henry, with the latter set to miss the rest of the season because of serious knee injury.
“Every team has injuries, and with Ivan Toney’s ban included we have seven players out,” Frank added.
Brentford are in EFL Cup acton on Wednesday against London rivals Arsenal, looking to end their two-match losing streak.
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The Bees then take on Nottingham Forest at the City Ground on Sunday.
