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Across the globe, this morning, Liverpool fans are looking out their windows in search of flying pigs, for they have been confronted with the equally unlikely reality that Luis Suarez has injured his knee in training with Uruguay and, with his participation in the World Cup seriously threatened, he will undergo surgery today in order to expedite his chances of recovery.
The reports, emanating originally from Uruguayan television, claim that Liverpool's talismanic striker has damaged the meniscus in his knee, something an MRI scan confirmed yesterday. It has been reported by Martin Charquero, a journalist who has had something of an inside track on Suarez-related stories in the past, that under the advisement of the national team's doctor, Suarez will today have a surgical procedure at 7.30 a.m., local time.
La intervención a Luis Suárez sería a las 7.30 en Médica Uruguaya.
— Martin Charquero (@MartinCharquero) May 22, 2014
Although the initial sounds from the Uruguayan camp are positive, the standard period of recovery for a torn or damaged meniscus is four to six weeks and that would clearly rule the striker out of any significant contribution to his team's campaign.
Uruguay's opening fixture is on the 14th of June, when they play Costa Rica and their group concludes on the 24th of that month. If this initial diagnosis is proved accurate, it will require all of Suarez's renowned durability and an implausibly expeditious recovery if he is to feature before the knock-out stages at the very earliest.
Far more worrying for fans of his club is the notion that a combination of the player's indomitable spirit and eagerness to play -- something Liverpool's conditioning staff have had to protect him from -- allied to the Uruguayan management's understandable desire to see him don the jersey of La Celeste, will see the player rushed back from this injury in a way that may have lasting effects. Disquieting times for the player, his countrymen and Liverpool supporters.
