Everton boss Frank Lampard admits Dominic Calvert-Lewin is facing six weeks out with a knee injury.
Lampard and the Toffees are preparing to face Chelsea in their Premier League season opener this Saturday.
He said, "Losing a player like Dominic, his quality, going into the first game is obviously going to effect you.
"I think we're looking at around six weeks for the injury. I saw a lot of crazy rumours yesterday but he's been assessed over a couple of days and that's where we're at.
"It comes with the territory of having a squad and training at this level and we'll have to work around it. Other players will have to step up and do the job - and hopefully that six weeks will pass relatively quickly and we get Dominic back."