English Premier League strugglers Brighton have been dealt a huge blow as pacy right back Tariq Lamptey has been ruled out for the rest of the season.

The former Chelsea youth player over the weekend underwent a surgery to repair his damaged hamstring.

Lamptey, 20, has been sidelined with the hamstring problem since the middle of December and underwent an operation in London on Saturday to fix a tear to the tendon.

It is thought the procedure was successful and should enable Lamptey to resume training before the campaign is over, however he will not be fit in time to feature in Brighton’s final 11 fixtures.

Lamptey has played a key role since joining the Seagulls from Chelsea in early 2020 and recently signed a new four-and-a-half-year contract to keep him at the club until the summer of 2025.

But he was forced off in the second half of a 0-0 draw at Fulham before Christmas and Brighton head coach Graham Potter last week expressed concern that Lamptey could miss the run-in.

Although the south coast side had been coping reasonably well in his absence, they have now lost three consecutive games and are separated from the drop zone by goal difference alone.