London, April 23 (IANS) Stoke City head coach Mark Hughes said on Saturday that the English football club's midfielder Ibrahim Afellay suffered a "serious" knee ligament injury, while media reports speculated that the Dutchman could be sidelined for eight months.
The former player of Barcelona twisted his knee in Friday's training session, reports Efe.
"It's unfortunate. He'll come back stronger with our support," Hughes said ahead of Saturday's game against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium.
Afellay, 30, who joined Stoke last summer, played 31 English Premier League (EPL) games out of 35 matches with the English club this season.
According to the BBC, the former player of PSG, Schalke and Olympiakos, could be out for eight months.