Ibrahimovic out until next year after tearing ACL

LONDON: Zlatan Ibrahimovic appears to have torn his anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) against Anderlecht and is reportedly out until January next year.

The Swede’s knee hyper-extended during the Red Devils’ victory in the Europa League and the long-term nature of the injury means the striker could have already made his final appearance in a United shirt.

According to ESPN, the forward will be out until January 2018 after seriously damaging his right knee.

They also report Ibrahimovic is expected to undergo surgery before facing a tough rehabilitation process before returning to the field.

It is unclear whether or not the forward, whose contract expires at the end of the season, is eligible to have his contract extended after picking up the longterm injury.

Multiple reports claim the Swede has torn the ACL in his knee, a serious injury that spells a long recovery time.

Other English Premier League stars who have suffered the injury in the past have been sidelined for roughly nine months.

Ibrahimovic works hard to maintain his fitness – he is keen on taekwondo and has a personal chef and trainer who follow him everywhere.

During the forward’s illustrious career he has proved highly durable, rarely picking up major injuries.

Despite the serious prognosis, there is not yet any confirmation on the extent of the striker’s injury.

In recent years ACL injuries have plagued the Premier League with the likes of Chelsea’s Kurt Zouma, Liverpool’s Danny Ings and Arsenal defender Carl Jenkinson all suffering long lay-offs because of the injury.

In 2014, when Theo Walcott suffered an ACL injury, Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger was confident he would not lose his pace.

But when discussing the infamous injury, the Frenchman said if you are over 30 you will not be able to come back as the same player.

He said: “We know deep studies show that the players around 25 with that kind of injury, they come back as normal.

“When you are over 30, over 29 you do not ever come back exactly the same.

“But between 25 and 28 you come back to the level you had before.” — The Sun, London