West Brom could be without defender Ahmed Hegazi for the opening weeks of the season due to a foot injury, The Express and Star have reported.

The Egyptian originally picked up the problem last season, but played through the pain in both West Brom's play-off semi-final defeat to Aston Villa, and Egypt's Africa Cup of Nations campaign - where Hegazi was on the pitch for every minute of all four games his country played before being knocked out at the Round of 16 stage by South Africa.

Hegazi is now due back in the UK on Monday, and it is thought that West Brom could look to use the summer to fix the problem, although the 28-year-old will miss several games at the start of the season if the problem requires surgery.

The Baggies however, have reportedly not ruled out the possibility of Hegazi playing on despite the injury with a view to fixing it a later date.

Following the departure of Craig Dawson earlier in the summer, it looks as though Hegazi will have a key role to play in West Brom's defence next season, despite the Egyptian himself being linked with both Aston Villa and Saudi Arabian side Al Ahli earlier in the summer transfer window.

It looks as though West Brom could be set for some defensive reinforcements sooner rather than later however, with Rotherham defender Semi Ajayi poised to join the club in a move reportedly worth a total of £2million.

The Verdict

This is a big blow for West Brom.

Hegazi was outstanding in their defence at times last year, and you imagine his importance will only be enhanced in the coming campaign following the departure of Craig Dawson, so losing him for the start of the season could be a significant stumbling block to their plans for next year.

It seems therefore that the Africa Cup of Nations has come at just the wrong time for the Baggies, as it now leaves them with little more than two weeks to get this sorted before the start of the season, rather than the months they would otherwise have had.

Even so, it may still be better to get this injury sorted now rather than later, so as to avoid doing more serious, long term damage should Hegazi decide that he wants to play on with the injury.