Troy Deeney says he will miss Watford’s next three Championship matches due to injury while Hornets’ defender Gabriel Tamas faces a prolonged spell on the sidelines after rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament.

Golden Boys captain Deeney suffered his hamstring injury against Blackpool last week and it kept him out of Saturday’s 1-1 draw against Bournemouth.

Speaking after the weekend draw against the Cherries, Deeney gave a brief update on his likely return.

“I hope to be back after the international break, so I’ll miss the next three games,” he told Sky Sports.

Hornets head of medical Marco Cesarini confirmed today that, barring any setbacks, the club hope to have the 26-year-old back for the trip to Sheffield Wednesday on Saturday, October 18.

While Deeney is likely to return in a few weeks, Tamas will be ruled out for several months.

An innocuous challenge during the draw with Bournemouth led to the Romania international leaving the pitch on a stretcher in the 32nd minute.

And it was confirmed yesterday that the 30-year-old has damaged his knee ligament.

Cesarini said: “He’s ruptured his ACL and we will arrange for him to have an operation next week.

“When it is an ACL (anterior cruciate ligament) problem, normally you could be out for five to six months. We have to wait and see what the surgeon says after the operation.”

Tamas has made ten appearances for the Hornets this season after joining the club in the summer on a free transfer, after leaving Doncaster Rovers at the end of the last campaign.

Both Deeney and Tamas’ injuries mean they will miss Saturday’s Championship trip to Blackburn Rovers.

Keith Andrews is also ruled out as he continues to recover from a calf problem. However, Gabriele Angella, who missed the draw with Bournemouth with a foot injury, is available for selection.

Young striker Barnard Mensah made his first competitive appearance in six months following a knee injury on Tuesday night for Watford’s Under-21 side and came through the match unscathed.

Fellow youngster Uche Ikpeazu continues to recover from ankle surgery and he is expected to rejoin first-team training early next week.