Spain manager confirms surgery fears for Barcelona star | OneFootball

Spain manager Luis de la Fuente has confirmed fears over a knee injury to Barcelona star Gavi. The 21-year-old missed their clash against Rayo Vallecano two weekends ago, but the injury is worse than first feared.

Gavi missed the game with discomfort, but Barcelona were hoping that the pain in his knee would fade away with rest. He was withdrawn from the Spain squad for this international break, but will not be back in action for at least a couple of weeks.

De la Fuente confirms Gavi surgery risk

In an interview with Cadena SER, de la Fuente shared an update on his status.

“I’ve spoken to Gavi: he’s sad and awaiting possible meniscus surgery.”

“Gavi is a very strong player… I’ve encouraged him because it’s from these situations that one comes out stronger.”

De la Fuente had called Gavi up for this international break, after returning to Spain duty in June for the Nations League.

What Barcelona are saying about Gavi

Barcelona are yet to make an official comment on the matter beyond the fact that he has a knee injury, and that his recovery wil determine his availability going forward. However the word coming out of the club is that they are keen to avoid surgery if possible. For the next two to three weeks, Barcelona will wait to see if the matter clears itself up.

Image via Alex Caparros/Getty Images

At that point, an arthroscopy would be considered on his meniscus. Typically, similar operations tend to take a month to six weeks to recover from, but there is no guarantee the meniscus will be fully repaired either.

Clear of ligament damage

One positive from the tests carried out is that no evidence has been found of damage to his cruciate ligament that kept him out for 11 months, and which he recovered from last year.

Meniscus trouble often goes hand-in-hand with cruciate injuries, as illustrated by David Alaba, who did undergo surgery in late April for that same reason after a cruciate tear of his own. In contrast, Gavi had been back and healthy for most of last season.