Real Madrid's Casemiro sidelined with broken leg

Real Madrid is about to discover the consequences of its over-reliance on Casemiro, after the club confirmed Wednesday the midfielder is sidelined with a fractured fibula.

The defending Champions League winner confirmed the news with a statement on its website, saying, "Following tests carried out today on Casemiro at the Sanitas La Moraleja University Hospital, he has been diagnosed with a fracture to the central third of his left fibula."

Casemiro, 24, came off in the 18th minute of Real's 2-0 victory at Espanyol last weekend, forcing the Brazilian international to miss out on Sunday's flat 1-1 draw with Villarreal.

Mateo Kovacic started in Casemiro's stead against the Yellow Submarine, slotted on the left of Toni Kroos in a three-man midfield that also featured fringe attacker James Rodriguez filling Luka Modric's role.

Without Casemiro, Real dropped points and failed to set a new consecutive La Liga wins record, and with an upcoming tilt against upstarts Las Palmas paired with a Champions League trip to goal-happy Borussia Dortmund, his absence leaves a hole in a squad with few weaknesses.

Casemiro had appeared in Real's first three league fixtures and its Champions League victory over Sporting, and with a penchant for passing and tough tackles, the Sao Paulo product has become one of the first names on Zinedine Zidane's team sheet.

While the club has not announced a timetable for Casemiro's return, saying, "his recovery will continue to be assessed," reports out of Spain speculate the ball-stopping Brazilian could miss between one and two months.