Liverpool defender Jamie Carragher is likely to be sidelined for a month after dislocating a shoulder.
The Reds vice-captain picked up the injury in Sunday's 2-1 defeat by Tottenham at White Hart Lane.
"It's very bad," said manager Roy Hodgson after the match. "It's a disappointing thing to happen on his 450th appearance in the Premier League.
"We'll now be without him and Steven Gerrard and they are the lifeblood of our club."
Skipper Gerrard missed the match with a hamstring problem he suffered in the 84th minute of England's 2-1 friendly defeat to France on 17 November.
The midfielder is expected to be out for between three and four weeks.
This is bad news for Liverpool and anyone betting on them keeping clean sheets. However, in midfield Meireles will continue to be a good option at a still reasonable 8.5. And an observation... Maxi Rodriguez is playing up alongside the strikers and may be well worth a punt as a 9.29 midfielder. I don't know that I want both him and Meireles in my team, but at home to a young and struggling Villa team... maybe. We're all looking for Van Der Vaart replacments, aren't we?
