Melbourne Heart's marquee signing Orlando Engelaar will undergo surgery no his broken leg on Thursday.
The 34-year old Dutchman sustained a fractured tibia in a pre-season match on the weekend and will now have an operation to address the problem before undertaking a rehab program with his new club.
"The Club does not wish to put in place a time line for recovery until the surgical process has concluded," Heart football operations manager John Didulica said.
"Our number one priority is to support Orlando and manage his health and well-being in what is obviously a challenging time."
Engelaar joined the Heart from Dutch giants PSV Eindhoven recently following stints with Schalke 04, FC Twente, RacingGenk and NAC Breda.