Republic of Ireland midfielder Darron Gibson is likely to require surgery at the end of the season to fix a troublesome thigh problem, according to Everton manager David Moyes.

Gibson has not made himself available for international duty since Ireland’s ill-fated run at Euro 2012 and any operation would see him miss the end of season friendlies with England, Georgia and Spain and the World Cup qualifier against the Faroe Islands.

The 25-year-old missed nearly three months from September with the injury and he sat out almost all January and although he has returned to the starting line-up on a regular basis he is still hampered.

Gibson scored from long-range in Saturday’s 2-0 win over QPR, only his second goal since signing from Manchester United in January 2012, and Moyes would like to see him do it more frequently but believes it is not possible currently.

“After the game on Saturday, I was asked about Darron Gibson’s goal and his shot — I think he could do it more and with more ferocity as well because he’s got a great shot on him,” said Moyes. “He has got a bit of a problem at the top of his thigh which will probably require an operation at the end of the season.”

Despite not being 100 per cent Gibson has added a different dimension to Everton’s midfield with his vision and distribution. “What he has given us is that he is good on the ball and he has a better range of passing than maybe some of the other midfielders we have,” added Moyes.

“I think overall he has had an impact. He had a bit of a dip midway through after he came back from his injury but his form is good right now.”