Juventus have entered another difficult passage of their season, with the injury list growing again just as the calendar leaves little room for recovery. Kamil Grabara, who recently made his Europa League debut for NEC and registered an assist, has suffered a serious right-knee injury in training.
The coach and the club
Medical examinations confirmed that Grabara has torn the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. The goalkeeper, on loan from Wolfsburg and serving as Guglielmo Vicario’s deputy, will undergo surgery during the week and is expected to be unavailable for between six and seven months.
It is another major absence for Juventus and the fourth player to require an operation in fewer than 20 days. The run of setbacks has followed the rhythm of the Serie A season, leaving the club to manage a growing number of long-term absences.
- On 31 August, Kenan Yildiz underwent treatment after fracturing the fifth metatarsal in his left foot. His expected absence is around three months.
- Marcus Thuram then required surgery for a knee cartilage problem and is set to miss roughly four months.
- Captain Manuel Locatelli underwent an operation on his lateral meniscus, with an estimated recovery period of five to six months.
- Grabara’s cruciate-ligament injury now adds a six-to-seven-month lay-off to Juventus’ concerns.
With Grabara facing a lengthy rehabilitation, Juventus are expected to bring Next Gen goalkeeper Radu into the senior group alongside Vicario and Carlo Pinsoglio. The club may nevertheless decide not to wait until January before looking for further cover.
Two free agents have put themselves forward in recent hours. Neto, formerly of Botafogo, previously made 22 appearances for Juventus between 2015 and 2017. Sergio Rico, whose previous clubs include Sevilla, Paris Saint-Germain and Al-Gharafa, is also under consideration as Juventus assess their options.
