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Bellamy will be a big miss for City.

The Welsh striker tore fibres in a patella tendon and City boss Mark Hughes concedes the "best-case scenario" is two to three weeks out.

Bellamy, who saw a specialist in London on Monday, has made an instant impression since arriving in a £14m deal from West Ham United and with Robinho also set to miss City's match with Aston Villa on Wednesday, Hughes has little choice up front.

"It's not an old injury," said Hughes. "It's the patella, he's torn fibres in his knee. He's going to be a big miss."

"Since he came to the club he has carried the fight for us and against a team like Villa you need as many of your top players available as possible."

With Brazilian striker Jo on loan at Everton, City have been hit hard after Robinho damaged ligaments in his ankle at Upton Park; but Hughes is hopeful the Brazilian will return for their UEFA Cup last-16 tie with Aalborg.

Bulgarian Valeri Bojinov is set to continue his return from injury with a place on the substitutes' bench against Villa in the Premier League and Hughes is confident the striker can overcome 20 months of injury hell since his £6million arrival from Fiorentina.

''At the moment Valeri is still an unknown quantity for everybody,'' said Hughes. ''He was an outstanding teenager and people paid a lot of money for him because they recognised the ability he had. Unfortunately his career has hit the buffers because of injuries.

''We are delighted that he is back but we can't place too much pressure on him. We don't know if he can play his natural game in the Premier League because he has never completed a game here.''

The 23-year-old is still carrying a bit of excess weight and after a horror run, which has included surgery on a cruciate knee ligament injury, followed by a ruptured Achilles tendon, Hughes may be tempted to give Bojinov a decent run off the bench.

''I had him in my starting line-up for the first game of the season, that is how highly I rate him,'' revealed Hughes. ''Unfortunately, he didn't even make the kick off because of the injury.

''Now it is just whether he can come back and make a real impression for us. We all hope it happens because everybody here thinks the world of him.

''Providing he stays clear of the injuries that have compromised him so much, Valeri has a real opportunity to establish himself as a top Premier League player.''