Journalist Joe Thomas claims that James Garner's latest injury is a 'real shame' for Everton and a 'big hit' to Frank Lampard's options.

The Lowdown: Two months out

Speaking after the Goodison Park outfit won 5-1 away at Western Sydney Wanderers in their warm-up friendly in Australia, Lampard gave an update on some players that picked up knocks in the camp.

Both Tom Davies and Yerry Mina are expected to be out for three to four weeks, but Garner could be out until 'early February':

"Tom is three weeks-ish, which is a positive result as we were worried about him.

"Yerry is similar, three to four weeks.

"Unfortunately, James Garner is going to be more than that. He’s probably going to be back at the back end of January or early February. It’s a disappointing injury."

The Latest: 'Big hit' for Lampard

Taking to Twitter, Liverpool Echo reporter Thomas claimed that losing Garner for the next couple of months is a 'real shame', and is a 'big hit' to Lampard and his squad options:

"Real shame for James Garner and a big hit to Frank Lampard's options when the domestic season resumes."

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The Verdict: Not ideal

Losing Garner until potentially February is certainly not ideal for Lampard. The central midfielder has made six appearances in the Premier League so far this season, and his 80.8% pass completion rate is one of the highest in the squad.

He came in the summer with a lot of promise having impressed on loan at Nottingham Forest last season, scoring four goals and supplying ten assists on the way to helping them win promotion up to the top flight (Transfermarkt).

Nonetheless, Lampard already has plenty of injuries in his squad, and so losing Garner as well really limits his options once the league season resumes.