Spanish soccer giant FC Barcelona’s key midfielder Pablo Gabi has been confirmed to have suffered a serious injury in an A-match (international friendly) and will undergo surgery.
“After a thorough examination, Gabi has been diagnosed with a complete rupture of the cruciate ligament in his right knee,” the club said on its website on Tuesday (local time).
In addition to the ACL, damage to the meniscus has also been confirmed, the club said, adding that surgery will begin in the next few days.
Gabi had started the previous day’s Euro 2024 qualifier against Georgia at the Jose Sorolla Municipal Stadium in Valladolid, Spain, a 3-1 Spain win, before leaving the field in the 26th minute.
In the 20th minute of the first half, Gabi’s lower body collided with an opposing defender near the corner of the penalty box, leaving him on the ground in pain.
He got back to his feet and continued to participate in the game, but three minutes later, while trying to catch a high ball in the air with his chest, 카지노사이트 he grabbed his right knee in pain again and headed to the locker room.
According to Spanish outlet As, Gabi is expected to miss at least eight months.
This is a huge loss for both the Spanish national team and Barcelona. Spain must now prepare for Euro 2024, which begins next June, without Gabi. The team will also have a hard time qualifying for the Paris 2024 Olympics, which are scheduled to begin next July.
The 2004-born Gabi, who became the youngest player to make an appearance for Spain (17 years, 61 days) against Italy in 2021 and the youngest to score a goal (17 years, 304 days) against the Czech Republic in last year’s UEFA Nations League, has been a key midfielder for the team since the World Cup in Qatar.
His home team, Barcelona, is even worse.
A product of the club’s youth system, Gabi has made 111 official appearances in a Barcelona first-team shirt, 89 of which have been starts, making him a key resource for the team.
This season, he’s played 12 regular-season games and three UEFA Champions League matches, minus the two games he missed due to accumulating cautions.
Meanwhile, AS reported that Barcelona will receive compensation for Gabi’s injury under FIFA’s Club Protection Program.
The program pays clubs a proportional amount of compensation for each day a player is out of action for more than 28 days after being called up to the national team for an A-match.
With the daily compensation set at €2548 (about $29,000), Barcelona could receive up to €7.5 million (about $10.9 million) if Gabi misses the entire year. The €7.5 million is the most that can be paid under the rules.