Luuk de Jong’s knee injury could mean a lengthy spell on the sidelines | OneFootball

For the third consecutive day, the FC Porto medical department received new injured players. After Eustáquio and Alberto Costa, yesterday it was Luuk de Jong and William Gomes who suffered physical problems, with the Dutchman's case being the most concerning. The striker sustained a sprain in his left knee with an internal lateral ligament injury during the training match with Lus. Lourosa and, although he will only undergo additional tests today, he could be sidelined for up to about two months.

The injury occurred following a collision with an opponent, which left Luuk de Jong's knee trapped. The severity was immediately suspected, a confirmation that is included in FC Porto's medical report.

The situation is similar to that of Martim Fernandes, who was injured in the 1st round of the League against Vitória and is also expected to be absent for about two months, with a return anticipated during the international break in mid-October. In Luuk de Jong's case, it seems he will not be part of Francesco Farioli's plans for the next three league matches (Nacional, Rio Ave, and Arouca) nor for the first two rounds of the Europa League (RB Salzburg and Red Star). The match against Benfica in the League is in 27 days, so it is also likely he will miss it, returning only after the aforementioned international break.

The injury comes at a time when Luuk de Jong was beginning to establish himself as a high-level alternative to Samu, as demonstrated in the classic at Alvalade, where he scored his first goal wearing the FC Porto jersey. Thus, Farioli temporarily loses an offensive asset, who had in the experienced Dutchman a distinct option from the Spanish striker in certain game contexts. With this setback, Deniz Gül becomes the only available alternative to Samu, who also had stoppages due to physical problems at the start of the season.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.