Dundee boss Neil McCann has confirmed that Marcus Haber is set for a potentially-lengthy spell on the sidelines.
The big Canadian injured his thigh against Aberdeen at Pittodrie last Saturday as he hit a cross.
His intended target, strike partner Faissal El Bakhtaoui, suffered a hamstring problem as he stretched for the ball and he could miss Sunday’s televised game against Hibs at Dens.
Another front man Randy Wolters is also rated doubtful while Sofien Moussa and Craig Wighton are definitely out after having knee surgery.
The manager certainly does not have his troubles to seek in attack and he is now going to obtain a second opinion on Haber in a bid to accelerate his recovery.
McCann said: “Marcus is struggling. The scan report on his thigh wasn’t good.
“We are going to have another conversation with a specialist because it can be treated conservatively or aggressively.
“These injuries can either be long-term or depending on the treatment, a bit shorter.
“So we need to get a second opinion and will go from there.
“It’s disappointing because Marcus has been doing well lately.
“What happened there (in Aberdeen) summed up our luck really – we have had a lot of injuries but you have to deal with it.
“Faissal has been in doing a wee bit but with hamstring injuries you can’t take risks.
“Randy Wolters is the same – it’s a question of how much you push him.
“But that’s football. We are working on various things to compensate if boys are not available.
“You have to be prepared and as a coaching staff that’s what we’re doing.”
McCann has been running the rule over trialists this week including former Rangers and Aberdeen target Khalid Aucho, ex-Nottingham Forest striker James Demetriou and full-back Jon Aurtenetxe who previously played for Athletic Bilbao.
However, the manager will not be rushed into any signings.
He said: “James Demetriou did OK but he’s not quite what we’re looking for so he won’t be staying.
“Khalid has done really well but he’s away home for an African Nations game.
“We have so many options in midfield so we have not taken a decision at the moment.
“We also have a Spanish lad in as well for us to take a look at.”