Chesterfield hit by more injury problems as Kabongo Tshimanga goes under the knife

And there is further bad news with George Carline, who has been out since October after a knee operation, and is unlikely to play again this season.

This all comes after Kabongo Tshimanga suffered a fractured leg and dislocated ankle against Weymouth last weekend.

The striker went under the knife on Thursday and the early signs are that the operation was a success.

On Tshimanga, assistant manager Danny Webb said on Friday morning: "We spoke to him yesterday and he was in good spirits and I think that is the main thing at this time, his mental state, because it has not just dented our promotion push but the lad wants to play football and he is not able to do that through no fault of his own.

"After a week or two they will probably assess the injury again and see if the healing process has started. If I was in Kabs’ shoes you are thinking pre-season is my time to start again. That is not me saying it can’t be any sooner or that it won’t be later.

"It is gut-wrenching and heartbreaking.

"There are always going to be speedbumps in a season, this is not a speed bump, this is a humongous hurdle.”

Defender Croll was forced off with a knee injury against Stockport County last week and left the stadium on crutches.

"He has been assessed and that is a long-term one,” Webb told the DT.

"That is going to be at least two to three months.”

Oyeleke had to come off in the second-half against Weymouth and he has torn his calf.

Webb said: “It is not ideal.

"He is in the medical department. I would say at least four to six weeks.”

Carline suffered a knee injury against Wrexham last October and it had been hoped he would be back around March but it appears it will be longer.

"He is another one, pre-season I think,” Webb said.

"If it is earlier then fantastic, if it is pre-season, then we are going to have another hell of a player coming back

"It was a nasty injury and a big operation.

"There have been a few teething problems with the healing process with that but nothing major.”

Meanwhile, Laurence Maguire (Achilles) is back in the fold and is available for selection.

Chesterfield have been hampered with long-term injuries all season and Webb says it needs to be sorted immediately.

He added: "It has been a recurring theme. We have to make sure that once we finish this season and hopefully we have got that promotion, we can all sit down and make sure this does not happen again. There have been too many injuries. Some have been bad tackles and some have been muscle injuries. It is important we don’t let that happen again and if it does, then it does, but we can’t just sweep that under the carpet.”