Hull City are fearing the worst over a knee injury picked up by in-form midfielder Eliot Matazo in the first half of Tuesday night's dismal 1-0 defeat at relegation rivals Cardiff City.

Matazo instantly called for help after appearing to twist awkwardly having won a foul for his side against the Bluebirds, before going to ground and requiring treatment.

After a lengthy spell of conversation with the club's doctors, Matazo limped off the pitch and down the tunnel before returning to the bench in the second half on crutches.

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Boss Ruben Selles admitted it didn't look good for the talented Belgian, who will have a scan once the swelling in his knee has eased somewhat in the next few hours and only then will the prognosis be fully known.

News of the potential injury to Matazo comes straight after Louie Barry sustained a knee injury in the first half of Saturday's win at Sunderland, with the youngster set for a spell on the sidelines, though at the time of writing, both City and Aston Villa - Barry's parent club - had not officially confirmed the extent of his injury.

"Well, the knee was swelling as soon as he had the incident in the game," Selles told Hull Live of Matazo's worrying plight. "It's too early to say (what the prognosis is), so we will need to wait until the scans in the next coming days. Hopefully, it's not bad, but it doesn't look great now."

"Well, he was OK," the Spaniard then said when asked how the 23-year-old was mentally. "He's a quiet boy. He was a little bit, not shocked, but a little bit quiet in the dressing room when I came in."

On the subject of Barry, Hull Live understands the prognosis is less than favourable for the talented youngster, with a formal announcement expected to confirm the news City had been fearing.

"He's been to check with a specialist," Selles explained without going into any further detail. "We have some news to offer. I think the club and his parent club are going to make a statement together to announce the direction, so you will get some information in the coming hours."

Republic of Ireland defender Sean McLoughlin also limped out of what turned out to be a damaging defeat for the Tigers, though his back issue is not expected to rule him out of next Tuesday's massive home game with Plymouth Argyle.

"He (McLoughlin) apparently has an ongoing situation, and in one of the moments, he felt like he was very, very limited in his mobility," he said. "It should not be a concern for the future, but in that moment, we have all experienced back pain that doesn't allow you to move properly on the football pitch."

Elsewhere, boss Selles has confirmed that influential midfielder Steven Alzate was forced to start the game on the bench because of some pain and discomfort following the weekend win on Wearside.

Fans were left surprised at Alzate's omission from the starting XI in South Wales, but Selles says it was forced upon him owing to the issue Alzate had.

"It was fully prevention, so Steven didn't recover well from the last game," Selles confessed. "He got some DOMS (delayed onset muscle soreness) in his hamstring that was a risk of injury, so that's why we were only able to use him in a small frame of time."