Burnley´s Defour undergoes surgery on calf injury

Burnley midfielder Steven Defour has undergone calf surgery and is likely to be out for the rest of the season.

Defour, who missed the World Cup during an eight-month layoff last year, has been restricted to six Premier League starts in 2018-19.

And after the Belgium international underwent another operation he is not expected to be return to action before the end of the campaign.

“He was going so well last year and had a knee situation,” Dyche told reporters of Defour, who helped the Clarets finish seventh and qualify for Europe last term.

“The knock-on effect is that he has had little injuries that sometimes happen. The calf situation was one too many and the specialist thought it was best to deal with the long-term view of it.”

Burnley, 16th in the Premier League after successive defeats ended their eight-game unbeaten run, are away to title-chasing Liverpool on Sunday.