JOSH Ruffels has been told he will not require surgery to repair the damage done to his shoulder on Saturday - but still faces a spell on the sidelines.

The left back was taken off with a knock to his left shoulder against Lincoln City, but received some good news when an X-ray on Saturday night showed no broken bones.

Also read: Matty Taylor among Oxford United's injuries after Lincoln

A scan today revealed damage, but it was not serious enough to warrant going under the knife.

At this stage United are not putting a clear timescale on the length of the recovery, just saying it will keep him out for 'weeks rather than days'.

Boss Karl Robinson told the club's website: "Clearly the initial reports are better than we might have hoped and hopefully he will be back relatively quickly."