Kenan Yildiz’s season has paused at its most demanding point, with Juventus’ No. 10 still at the beginning of a recovery that will require patience rather than promises. Just over three weeks after surgery on his left foot, the Turkish forward remains in Germany, moving with crutches and wearing a protective boot as he works through the first stage of rehabilitation.
The coach and the club
Yildiz underwent his operation in Augsburg on 31 August, with Dr Martin Jordan carrying out the procedure in the presence of Juventus club doctor Marco Freschi. The surgery addressed a fracture at the base of the fifth metatarsal in his left foot, using osteosynthesis to stabilise the injury.
His early rehabilitation has been organised in agreement with Juventus in Regensburg, the city where he was born. There, he has spent time with family and friends, including Eintracht Frankfurt prospect Can Uzun, while also appearing at public events during his period away from Turin.
The forward has chosen Integralis, a physiotherapy and sports-performance centre in Regensburg, for his work during this phase. The programme combines osteopathy, physiotherapy and athletic preparation with targeted conditioning, mobility exercises, body-awareness work and breathing methods. Its purpose is not only to support the healing process, but also to preserve movement quality and physical condition during inactivity.
For now, the visible signs of the injury remain clear: Yildiz is still relying on crutches and has a substantial brace on the injured foot. Much of his current training is therefore centred on retaining as much muscle tone as possible before he can begin the more active part of his return.
His new close-cropped haircut has also drawn attention. It recalls a moment from three years ago, shortly after Massimiliano Allegri handed Yildiz his Serie A debut, when the then-Juventus coach encouraged him to cut his hair because he kept touching it during matches.
A return measured in stages
The expected absence is around three months, meaning there remains considerable ground to cover. Only once the fracture has fully healed will Yildiz be able to leave behind the crutches and boot, return to Turin and begin his reconditioning work with Juventus.
The club would like to bring him back into the squad during the international break from 9 to 21 November, when the group at Continassa is likely to be reduced. That would give him a chance to build toward a gradual return to competition at the start of December.
- First, the fracture must consolidate completely before he can remove the brace and stop using crutches.
- He would then return to Turin for the athletic reconditioning phase.
- Juventus hope he could rejoin the group during the November international window.
- A carefully managed match return could follow in early December.
The early December schedule offers possible targets: Sassuolo in the Coppa Italia on 2 December, Udinese in Serie A on 6 December, or Hapoel Beer Sheva in the Europa League on 10 December. None can yet be treated as a fixed appointment. At this stage, Juventus’ priority is the complete recovery of a player whose absence has removed one of the side’s most distinctive attacking figures from the championship’s next chapter.
