Gold Coast United has suffered a major setback ahead of its inaugural Hyundai A-League season, losing Brazilian midfielder Jefferson to a serious knee injury.
Jefferson twisted his knee during training on Thursday attempting a change of direction and had to be stretchered from the field.
Scans revealed the 27-year-old has suffered a meniscal cartilage tear (bucket handle tear), an injury that is likely to keep the midfielder out for up to four months.
United coach Miron Bleiberg said a replacement player may need to be found.
“We are all very, very disappointed for him but these things happen in football unfortunately,” Bleiberg said.
“He turned one way then the other, the next thing he was on the ground in obvious pain. We could tell right away that he was in trouble so he was stretchered off and taken to hospital for an MRI scan.”
“The results showed that he has torn his cartilage so there are two solutions. One is that he has it removed, but he will probably suffer for that later in life.”
“The other is to try and repair it, which will take longer but is in the best interests of the player.”
“Obviously we will do whatever is right for Jefferson and ensure that he receives the best advice and treatment.”
“Potentially he will miss three or four months but we will know more when he sees the surgeon.”
“We are now looking at the possibility of bringing in a replacement player because losing Jefferson for such a long period will be detrimental to our squad.”
