Stephen Pearson will undergo knee surgery this week, ruling him out for up to four months.

The Scottish midfielder will go under the knife on Thursday to cure the problem and will miss Sunday's final game of the season against Cardiff City.

He is set to miss the start of next season as a result of the operation, but manager Nigel Clough believes with Pearson's fitness levels so high it won't take him long to get up to speed with the rest of the squad.

He said: "The operation will keep Stephen out for around four months, so straight away he will not be available for pre-season and the first month or six weeks of next season.

"Stephen is a naturally fit lad anyway so it shouldn't take him too long to get back up to speed with the rest of the team.

"It is a blow for Stephen but it is something that needs to be done."