Such is the seriousness of Aston Villa striker Christian Benteke’s ruptured achilles tendon, there is no guarantee he will come back, a leading orthopaedic surgeon has warned.
The Belgium international was ruled out of the World Cup when he suffered the injury in training last week. The initial prognosis was that Benteke would be sidelined for six months, but that has since been extended to eight months, according to some media outlets.
However, Simon Moyes, a consultant orthopaedic surgeon at The Wellington Hospital in London said the seriousness of the player’s injury means not only could he be out of action for a long time, injuries of this nature are often career-threatening.
There is no guarantee he will be back, Moyes told FootballDirectNews.com. “While he is more than likely to recover after six months, sometimes it takes longer and it can be 12 months before they are playing again. “Moyes added that while a repaired tendon is usually about 80% as strong as it was prior to injury, if it is re-ruptured, it could be the end of a player’s career.

When players do come back, they are not always the same, said Moyes. “Physically they can be slightly slower and sometimes a mental block means they can be scared to go in for certain tackles. “

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