LONDON (AFP) - Goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer is expected to miss the rest of the season after fracturing his cheekbone but could be back for World Cup duty with Australia, Premiership club Middlesbrough said on Monday. Schwarzer got injured in the 1-0 FA Cup semi-final defeat by West Ham on Sunday but the 33-year-old could still make the June 9 to July 9 finals in Germany after initial fears he would miss it.
He could be back in light training wearing a protective mask within a fortnight, but he will be unable to play again for around a month.
Schwarzer was due to undergo surgery on Monday afternoon afternoon to repair the damage, which was caused by a clash with Hammers striker Dean Ashton shortly before half-time.
"Mark is likely to miss the rest of Middlesbrough's season, but could be okay for the World Cup," Boro's head physio Grant Downie told the club's official website, www.mfc.co.uk.
The injury will rule Schwarzer out of Thursday night's UEFA Cup semi-final, second leg clash with Steaua Bucharest at the Riverside Stadium.
Had it not been for his performance in Romania last week, the Teessiders could have been facing a 3-0 rather than 1-0 deficit going into arguably the most important 90 minutes of the season.
"Mark Schwarzer made two very important saves," McClaren admitted later. "I thought their goalkeeper made two very good saves, but Mark, certainly in the second half, kept us in the tie."
With the final taking place on May 10 in Eindhoven, the Netherlands, he would be unlikely to be available should they progress.
However, while he may also struggle to make his country's friendly clash with Greece on May 25, he should be fit for the warm-up games against Holland and Liechtenstein which precede their opening Group F match against Japan on June 12 in Kaiserslautern, where he played Bundesliga football before his move to England.
Schwarzer's absence will come as a huge blow to Boro with his form, particularly in Europe, having helped them make something of a season which has alternated between expectation and frustration.
Ironically, he might have left the club he joined in a 1.5 million-pound move from Bradford in February 1997 during January as unrest festered within the camp.
He submitted a transfer request despite being told he was wanted on Teesside as Boro attempted to offload Ugo Ehiogu and Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink.
However, he later withdrew it and has impressed both his manager and the fans with his contribution ever since.
Compatriot Brad Jones, the man who was eventually beaten by Marlon Harewood's 78th-minute strike as the Hammers ended Boro's FA Cup dream, will deputise with youngster David Knight likely to occupy the bench.
