Pape Souare could be out for the season after being involved in a horrific car crash.

The Crystal Palace full back had to be airlifted to a hospital in east London when his Mercedes 4x4 was involved in a two-car collision on the M4 on Sunday.

The 26-year-old Senegal defender smashed into the central reservation near Heathrow Airport and firefighters had to cut the roof from the wrecked vehicle to rescue him. The driver of the other car was unhurt.

This is the moment footballer Pape Souare was pulled from the wreckage of his crashed car

A team of rescuers battled to free the Senegalese defender, who suffered head and leg injuries

The roof of the Mercedes was cut from it so rescuers to get to the 26-year-old

The mangled metal of the 4x4 was left at the side of the road following Sunday's incident

Palace manager Alan Pardew fears the player has broken his leg, which could rule him out for a large part of the season.

‘He's not in a good way in terms of football, I think he's broken his leg so maybe not so good.

'But thankfully he looks sound other than that, just a bit bashed up,’ Pardew told Sky Sports.

‘We’ll have to look after him and get him back as quickly as we can because he’s a great lad and it’s a big loss. It is a blow but, more importantly, it’s not as bad as it could have been.’

Souare has suffered a broken leg, according to his Crystal Palace manager Alan Pardew

Pardew said he was thankful the incident was not as bad as it could have been

Police are looking for witnesses to the crash which happened just after midday on Sunday

CCTV images from the scene after the accident show one lane closed as emergency services deal with the debris and wreckage from the crash

The club said in a statement: ‘The player has sustained injuries to his thigh and jaw bone and will remain in hospital while he receives treatment. We obviously wish him a speedy recovery.’

Souare started the first three of Palace’s Premier League games this season but missed Saturday’s 2-1 win at Middlesbrough with a leg injury.