Roberto De Zerbi dealt major blow as star forward out for months - 'Bad news for us'

The Barcelona loanee, 21, was substituted in the first-half with a hamstring injury against Nottingham Forest on Saturday, November 25.

Providing an update on Friday (December 8) – ahead of Brighton’s home match against Burnley – De Zerbi said: “The news about Ansu Fati is that he needs three months from when he picked up the injury.

"It’s bad news for us because he was playing better, he was understanding better the idea. I am sorry for him and the team especially now when Welbeck is not playing, Enciso is not playing.”

This rules Fati out until February 25 at the earliest, which will be a huge blow for him and the club.

The winger has scored four goals in 17 appearances in all competitions – netting in both 2-0 victories against European giants Ajax.

The youngster missed ten months of action for Barcelona after suffering a meniscus tear in the 2020/21 season. He was also out for more than nine weeks with a hamstring injury in the 21/22 season.

De Zerbi also confirmed the injured Adam Webster is still unavailable for Brighton – but is pleased to see Lewis Dunk and Mahmoud Dahoud return from suspension. Adam Lallana is also available.

“I don’t know when he [Webster] will play,” the Italian said. “But it’s important for us that Dunk and Mo are available because they’re both very important, especially in this moment.

"We are going through a difficult moment in terms of injuries and having two players available is important.”