After suffering a season-ending knee injury against Arsenal during the preseason, Real Madrid forward Marco Asensio underwent surgery on Wednesday to repair the damage.
The long road back to match fit begins now for Asensio. The number 20 suffered a devastating ruptured anterior cruciate ligament and damaged his left lateral meniscus which will see him miss the entire 2019/2020 campaign.
Under the supervision of the Sanitas medical staff, Doctor Manuel Leyes performed the procedure. The club confirmed the surgery on its official website shortly after defeating Red Bull Salzburg 1-0 in a friendly.
"Our player Marco Asensio has undergone successful surgery today on the anterior cruciate ligament and lateral meniscus in his left knee. The operation was carried out by Doctor Manuel Leyes, under the supervision of the Real Madrid Medical Services. Asensio will remain in hospital until he is well enough to be discharged. From that point on, his recovery program will begin."
The injury to Marco could not have come at a worse time after the Spaniard set up and then scored against Arsenal in Landover, Maryland. Expected to compete for the starting spot on the right side, his injury has brought a little confusion to manager Zinedine Zidane’s lineup and has forced him to change his formation as well.
While this is a terrible injury for Marco, this could help both Lucas Vazquez and James Rodriguez become prominent players in the Real Madrid team. James was rumored to be on his way to either Atletico or Napoli to rejoin former manager Carlo Ancelotti, but that has all changed.
Asensio is just 23, so he still has plenty of time to make a comeback and still be a star with Los Blancos. Combined with a solid relationship with Zidane, Marco Asensio should be able to make a strong return when he is healthy again.