Ward came off in the first-half against Manchester City, and the manager confirmed in his pre-match press conference that he has not recovered in time for the visit of the Seagulls – but had positive news elsewhere.
“Joel Ward, as I think everyone knows, picked up an injury, unfortunately, last weekend,” Hodgson confirmed. “He’s had a scan, so we will be missing him for a while - so that is a new injury concern.
“Otherwise, the ones who have been injured are making good progress, most of them. [Jefferson] Lerma has made much quicker progress than expected, and Ebere Eze is coming on very well too.
“He is on the cusp, really, and it’s a decision we will have to make at the time, whether to start him or whether to try to protect him a little bit on the bench, but we'll make that decision in the course of the next few hours.
“Dean Henderson we know is back, and Jordan Ayew is back from suspension. The other [injuries] are the ones I think that everyone knows about.”
Hodgson pointed to another positive in his desire to get his squad back to its full strength: the performances of several younger players who have seized their opportunities in recent weeks.
“We have had a real boost over the last couple of weeks with [returns from injury], and with the emergence of a couple of younger players,” he said.
“When given the chance to get onto the field, which has happened with the amount of injuries, they have also given us course for great hope and belief that the future is going to be bright for the club and bright for the team.
“But of course, the immediate future is always the most concerning and tomorrow night we want to get back to winning ways if we can.”