AFC Bournemouth defender Adam Smith will be sidelined for up to three months by a knee injury sustained earlier this month.

The full-back was stretchered off midway through the first half of the Cherries’ Premier League defeat at Newcastle United.

However, following extensive medical assessment, Smith’s injury is not as bad as first feared, and on Saturday the 27-year-old underwent a procedure to repair a cartilage tear in his right knee.