Tottenham Hotspur manager Harry Redknapp has revealed that Michael Dawson could need surgery on his Achilles.
The defender last featured for Spurs in their 5-1 home defeat to Manchester City in August.
Despite making a return to training earlier in the month, Redknapp has said that the problem has flared up again.
"Michael is going for a scan on Wednesday on his Achilles and at the moment he's not feeling happy with it," said Redknapp. "It could be a long-term problem for him.
"Michael started to run but didn't feel good. He felt the same pain, had another scan and now has to go to specialist on Wednesday again to see why.
"Until he sees the specialist we don't know if they want to operate on him, which we don't want. An operation would be a long job, we're hoping there is nothing there and it's part of what he'll feel from scar tissue or something. The last resort is an operation."
Redknapp also said that defender William Gallas could be fit for Sunday's home match against Queens Park Rangers.
"I'm hoping William Gallas should be back now," he added. "He's had a calf strain in both legs but should be over that. He's trained this week and we hope he's on his way back."
Spurs go into Sunday's match at White Hart Lane in sixth place in the Premier League table.