Ibrahim Afellay's season is likely to be over after the Stoke midfielder travelled to Spain for knee surgery.
Afellay only returned to action in December after recovering from cruciate ligament problems but his campaign already looks at an end after he was ruled out for a minimum of four weeks.
That left Potters boss Mark Hughes pessimistic about the prospects of seeing the Netherlands international again this term.
"Unfortunately Ibrahim Afellay has a bit of a problem with his knee and is likely to be out for four or five weeks," Hughes said in a news conference.
"He has gone back to Barcelona to see the surgeon who has worked with him before and has undertaken a small operation.
"There was a little problem in his knee but hopefully the procedure will help clear that up.
"With there only being six games of the season left it is unlikely that he will feature again unfortunately, but we will wait and see about that."
Afellay's teammate Joe Allen will also miss Saturday's game against Hull after taking a knock in his side's 2-1 defeat at Liverpool.
His is only a minor issue, though, and a reunion with Swansea on April 22 looks to be on the cards.
"Joe is out of the game this weekend, but all being well he will be available for the match against his former side next Saturday," Hughes said.
The club have also confirmed Jonathan Walters, who put Stoke ahead at Anfield before a second-half comeback, has missed training this week and is a doubt.