Manchester United captain Roy Keane will be out of action for longer than expected following his hip operation, according to his manager Alex Ferguson.
The midfielder, who underwent surgery in September, had planned to return to action in the Champions League game against Bayer Leverkusen on November 13th.
"He isn't as far forward as we expected him to be. He is a few weeks away," said Ferguson.
"With this injury it is a long remedial period and he did a lot of hard work, so we decided to give him a break. He went off for a holiday with his family. He needed a break because he can sometimes push himself a bit too hard."
Keane begins a five-match domestic suspension next week for bringing the game into disrepute following comments in his autobiography that he deliberately set out to hurt Manchester City's Alf-Inge Haaland in a game in April, 2001.
He will miss Tuesday's League Cup tie against Leicester City and premier league games against Manchester City, West Ham United, Newcastle United and Liverpool before being eligible to return against champions Arsenal on December 7th.