Watford Football Club have announced that winger Gerard Deulofeu will undergo knee surgery after scans confirmed that he suffered a ruptured Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) and torn meniscus in the 3-0 thrashing of Liverpool.
The Spaniard suffered the injury after landing awkwardly during the first half of the win on Saturday as he attempted to dispossess Liverpool defender Virgil van Dijk. The winger was then stretchered off and taken to the hospital for scans.
The Hornets stopped the unbeaten run of the Reds in the top flight this season at the weekend and moved out of the relegation zone with their first league win since January 12. Ismaila Sarr’s second-half double and Troy Deeney’s goal ensured that Watford upset the Premier League leaders.
According to a statement released on Monday afternoon, the club said the surgery will sideline him for between six and nine months and is set to miss the rest of the season.
Speaking to the club website, Watford manager Nigel Pearson has said the injury to Deulofeu is a huge blow to the club as the team is battling to avoid relegation. The coach said he does see the Spaniard playing any further part in the Hornets’ battle for Premier League survival. He, however, urged his other players to step up and fill the void left by the Spaniard.
He said: “Unfortunately for him and us, the scan results really show he is probably going to be out for the rest of the season.
“He’s a really good lad as well. I think it is upsetting for the players when one of your colleagues gets an injury like that during a game.
“For sure Geri is going to be a miss for us, but equally it’s important we look forward with a positive mentality. Maxi Pereyra went in for Geri and I thought he did very well when he went on.
“It almost goes without saying that we’ll give Geri all the support he needs for a full recovery.”
Club captain Troy Deeney, who suffered a bad injury himself earlier this season, offered his support to Deulofeu and revealed a conversation between the pair after he suffered his injury
added: “We wish him all the best, we wish his family well. Unfortunately, this is the game that we play.
“It’s going to be a real tough one and we wish him well. I said to him at half-time ‘we’re going to win this for you’, and thankfully we did, thankfully I’m a man of my word.”
 and torn meniscus in the 3-0 thrashing of Liverpool.){kind=link}