Sunderland will be without Charlie Wyke for up to two months after the striker was stretchered off with a knee injury in Saturday's defeat to Burton.

It was a bad day all-round for Jack Ross' men, with the Black Cats suffering their first league defeat of the campaign at the Pirelli Stadium.

However, the major worry for many connected to the club afterwards was the situation for summer signing Wyke.

The 25-year-old left the pitch in agony after a challenge with Burton goalkeeper Dimitar Evtimov just before half-time.

And, Chronicle Live have revealed that the former Bradford man has suffered ligament damage that will keep him out for six to eight weeks.

It's a similar injury, on the same knee, to the one that Wyke had upon joining the North East side. That prevented him from making his debut until September and the game against Burton was actually Wyke's first league start.

The target man is now set to miss around ten games with his latest setback in what is a busy time for the League One side.

Josh Maja and Josh Sinclair are the two other natural strikers that Ross has available to use in Wyke's absence.

The Verdict

This is a big loss to Sunderland, although when you saw how Wyke left the field on Saturday many would've feared that he could have been out for even longer.

So, whilst that's a positive, there's no doubt he will be a big miss over the next two months as Wyke has proven himself to be a top player at this level.

As well as that, the Black Cats aren't blessed with real depth up front and this could seriously hinder their promotion push.

Thoughts, Sunderland fans? Let us know in the comments below.

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