Saracens could be without scrum-half Neil de Kock for the entire Heineken Cup Pool stage after it was announced his will be out of action for 8 to 12 weeks with a fractured arm.
De Knock picked up the injury in his side's 42 v 17 win over Benetton Treviso on the opening weekend and missed Saracens' defeat to Biarritz Olympique on Saturday.
He underwent surgery on Monday to remove a plate in his arm from a previous injury to aid the healing process and is expected to be ruled out for at least eight weeks.