Diego Carlos ready for a long absence with the rupture of Achilles

Aston Villa have confirmed that Diego Carlos ruptured his Achilles tendon in Saturday's 2-1 win over Everton.

The 29-year-old, who would have cost the Premier League club £26m when he arrived from Sevilla in June, was making his home debut.

The arrival of Diego Carlos was seen as an important part of Steven Gerrard's attempt to strengthen the backbone of the Villa squad after an unconvincing end to last season.

But now it looks possible that the Brazilian won't play again this campaign after Villa confirmed he fears he suffered a serious injury to his Achilles tendon innocuously just at the end of the match.

The injury also ends any chance the centre-back - last year's Olympic gold medalist - had of playing for Brazil at the World Cup.

A brief statement from Villa did not suggest a potential return date, simply stating that the player will undergo surgery and "then begin his rehabilitation programme".