Jores Okore set for a long spell on the sidelines

"The transfer window is firmly shut; these are the players that will carry your hopes..." says Jack Woodward on the autoplay video that starts each time you visit the official Aston Villa website. These are, indeed, the 25 players that will carry our hopes until January. And sometimes, those hopes will be dashed.

Jores Okore left that monstrosity of a match against Newcastle in the 30th minute, following a collision with Loïc Remy a few minutes before. It didn't appear as though the defender's injury was terribly serious; he left the pitch of his own accord, after all.

But now the club has released a statement confirming the results of an MRI scan: Okore ruptured his ACL and is now set for surgery on his right knee. The Dane could be out for up to nine months.

Remember that sense of optimism after the Arsenal match? Or even after the Chelsea game? Try to return there in your minds, Villa fans. It looks like this season ain't going to be as easy as we'd hoped.