Hearts' Paterson faces up to 10 months out with knee injury
The right-back suffered a knee injury against Kilmarnock.
Hearts right-back Callum Paterson faces up to 10 months on the sidelines after a scan on his knee injury realised his worst fears.
Paterson went down in distress and was carried off on a stretcher after jarring his left knee when his studs caught the turf during Hearts' 4-0 win over Kilmarnock on Tuesday night.
But the player has vowed to fight back from his set-back, posting on Twitter: "Absolutely gutted with the scan results. But these things happen in life. I will be back."
A Hearts statement read: "A scan on Callum Paterson's injured knee has revealed that the Scotland star faces between 8-10 months out on the sidelines.
"After receiving the bad news today, the 22-year-old will go for an operation as soon as possible in January before starting his rehabilitation."
The news is a devastating blow for a player who looked set for a major move to England, possibly in January or at the end of the season at the latest.
The likes of Wigan and Derby had confirmed interest in the Scotland right-back, who scored his 10th goal of the season against Kilmarnock before injury struck.
Hearts head coach Ian Cathro told the club's website: "It's a bad one for Callum and everyone here is gutted for him.
"Callum's a top-class player and we'll miss him in the first team, but we now have to look to those within the squad to step up and fill the void.
"We'll help Callum as much as we can though this difficult time."
Hearts could now extend Paterson's contract to allow him to rebuild his career at Tynecastle.
Director of football Craig Levein recently confirmed the club were looking for a seven-figure fee for Paterson in January and they would have received about ÂŁ400,000 in compensation if he had left for a new club in the summer.
That fee will not apply to any cross-border move after Paterson turns 23 in October.