The Socceroos will be without star striker Mohamd Toure for their final matches before the World Cup, with the young star facing six weeks on the sidelines due to injury.
Toure lasted just nine minutes on the pitch before he had to be replaced during Norwich City's 2-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday in the Championship on Thursday (AEDT), suffering an injury to his groin.
No confirmation about the severity of his injury could be given by club staffers post-match, but Norwich manager Philippe Clement has since confirmed Toure's fitness.
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"He has a muscle injury," the Belgian told reporters on Saturday (AEDT).
"He will be out for four to six weeks. It's a disappointing one, of course, because it's also one nobody saw coming so fast in the game.
"He was in full speed and then in a duel out of balance, so it's really unlucky."
The injury timeline given by Clement not only impacts Norwich but also is a brutal blow for the Socceroos, who will host Cameroon and Curacao in international friendly matches at the end of March.
The absence of Toure will be a disruption Tony Popovic did not want for the national team, although it appears the young star will be back in time for the World Cup in June.
"Absolutely gutted," Toure posted on Instagram a day after suffering his injury.
"A minor setback. Just know I'll be back stronger and better."
Toure, for now, joins the lengthy list of Socceroos stars who are on the sidelines, including the likes of Harry Souttar, Craig Goodwin, Connor Metcalfe and Noah Botic.
Prior to Norwich's 2-0 win over Sheffield Wednesday, Toure had scored five goals in four games since crossing from Danish Superliga club Randers on a four-and-a-half-year deal reportedly worth $5.12 million.
Australia will kick off its campaign on day three of the World Cup in Vancouver against a country to be determined.
Touré and fellow young gun Nestory Irankunda could form a lethal partnership up front for the Socceroos.
Touré has scored two goals from five appearances for Australia.
In Randers colours, Touré scored 12 goals in 48 appearances.
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Randers manager Jesper Sorensen admitted recently the club may have sold Touré to Norwich City for less than he was worth.
"If he had played the whole autumn as he has started in Norwich, the price would probably have been different," Sorensen told Danish outlet Bold.
"But that wasn't the case, and that's why we're proud of the sale we ended up making.
"We are, of course, looking forward to both achieving various bonuses and the opportunity to realise the resale clause that exists. Because he has the potential to go really far."
