Bolton's Owen Coyle

Jamaican international Ricardo Gardner could be coming to the end of his time with English Premier League team Bolton Wanderers after a knee injury will rule the defender out for the rest of the season.

While not being specific regarding the player's future, Gardner was not included in the team's squad of 25 players for the second half of the season. After being initially sidelined with thigh strain it was discovered that Gardner had also suffered another knee injury.

A minor procedure could have seen Gardner returning to play for Bolton again this season, but it was decided that in the best interest of all concerned corrective surgery would be done on the cartilage-related issue.

The one-time Reggae Boyz captain had only just recovered from an injury months before. Returning to Bolton after a loan spell at Preston, Gardner was given a one-year extension on his contract in order to regain his spot in the club's rotation. Coyle, however, has remained tight-lipped regarding the player's future role at the club.

"The doctor and the medical staff don't think he'll be able to play again before the end of the season," Coyle told The Bolton News (theboltonnews.co.uk).

Bolton's Ricardo Gardner.

"Those are his circumstances, so that's what we had to do.

"He has a knee injury and it is a real shame for him. But the thing about it is that he'll be able to come back and have a career.

"The decision was made, and Ricardo had a big part in that. We could have patched it up and he could probably have got away with a month here or there, but then he would be back to square one.

"It was important for him to get it done properly and make sure he still had a footballing career."

Gardner, the second-longest player in the current Bolton squad, has enjoyed a 14-year tenure at the club, joining the Trotters after the 1998 World Cup in France. The injury will also rule the player out of contention for the Reggae Boyz who will begin their World Cup qualification in June.