U.S. women's national team star Rose Lavelle has been sidelined for a "short spell" after suffering a knee injury during Manchester City's win at Everton.
Lavelle limped off the pitch in the first half of City's 3-0 win at Walton Hall Park on Sunday after picking up a knock while lunging in to win the ball back in midfield.
The 25-year-old, who was part of the USWNT World Cup-winning squad last year, was making only her second start for the Blues since her summer move from OL Reign, having sat out the start of the season with an ankle issue.
She will now be unavailable for selection when Gareth Taylor's side open their 2020-21 Champions League campaign away at Goteborg on Wednesday, with City confirming the news via their official website following a scan.
Taylor delivered the following update on Lavelle's condition prior to the medical assessment: “Crutches were a precaution so it probably looked worse. Hopefully, it’s not too bad.
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“We were trying to get her into a decent vein of consistency.
“We had to be mindful of Rose’s existing problems. She’s had a few niggles and she was limited in what she could do on USA camp.
“If you compare Rose’s situation with Sam Mewis’, we got Sam a little bit earlier to the club and once she gained a decent level of fitness, she hit the ground running.
“It’s not ideal but she’s resilient and she’ll bounce back.”
The City boss went on reveal that Lauren Hemp will gradually be eased back into action following her first appearance of the season off the bench against Everton, after having made a full recovery from a serious hamstring injury.
“The squad is in pretty good shape,” he said. "We need to manage Lauren Hemp in the right way.
“It’s great to have her back but to expect her to be involved in four games in 14 days is going to be too much. Outside of that and Rose’s injury, we don’t look too bad.
“We’ve made a decision on what it looks like in the next four games. We have a plan in place. That could change with injuries – we didn’t want Rose to be injured but we will deal with it in the right manner.
“(On the hectic schedule) I love it to be honest but I don’t have to play in those games! Although I’m pretty sure the players prefer having games. I prefer it this way. Bar a few knocks, we have a squad capable of coping
“We want everyone to be available and we’ll give a good account of ourselves in all games – not just on Wednesday.”