Stoke City winger Thibaud Verlinden has confirmed that he will miss the rest of the season after suffering a knee ligament injury against Preston last night.

The 20-year-old came on as a late second half sub for Michael O'Neill's men but lasted just seven minutes before he was forced off with what looked a concerning injury after a tackle from Darnell Fisher.

And, the player has taken to Twitter this evening to given an update on his situation and it was bad news as he revealed he won't play again this season.

"It’s with a lot of sadness that I have to write this message to say that yesterday’s game was my last game of the season. It’s not an easy injury but I promised myself, my family and the fans that I will recover from this and come back stronger!"

Whilst he hasn't confirmed the exact type of injury he has suffered, the Stoke City website announced that Verlinden had damaged his cruciate ligament, meaning he could miss the next nine months.

The Belgian had played just five games for the Potters after he was recalled from a successful loan spell with Bolton in January.

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The verdict

This is a major blow for Stoke City and you have to feel really sorry for Verlinden.

Even though he has only been on the fringes in the past month, he is an exciting winger with huge potential and this will seriously halt his progress.

Pleasingly, Verlinden appears to have a good attitude going by his social media post and he now needs to focus on his long road to recovery.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.