Real Madrid have just lost goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to a major injury, but manager Carlo Ancelotti is more optimistic about another of his injured players.
Turkish talent Arda Guler was getting rave reviews at the start of pre-season, but his progress has been halted by a meniscus injury in his knee. This forced him to leave their pre-season tour in the USA and return to Madrid.
There has been little transparency since then, but it recently emerged that Guler may have to undergo surgery, which could keep him out for five to seven weeks.
However, the Italian coach was not worried about that.
“If he has an operation, the recovery time is very short. Arda’s problem is very minor and I think he can recover very quickly. I can’t go into details about privacy,” Ancelotti said.
Guler had initially tried a more conservative treatment for his problem, but it appears that surgery will be the only way to fix it.
Considering about three weeks since the injury, if the above diagnosis is correct, then about two and a half months of total recovery can be assumed.
Ancelotti won’t want to rush Guler back either, but his calm attitude towards him will be reassuring to Real Madrid fans.