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BARCELONA, Spain (AP) -FC Barcelona defender Gabriel Milito could miss up to nine months after having an operation Tuesday to repair a torn ligament in his right knee, the same joint that he injured seven years ago.
The Argentina defender originally was expected to miss six months but a team doctor warned that more extensive damage than originally thought was discovered, and Tuesday's surgery on the 27-year-old could delay his return.
"The six months may end up being as many as nine, as operating on the same knee, and taking out one (part of the ligament) and replacing it with another, can lead to added complications," Dr. Ramon Cugat said. "The player's recovery will be seen on a day to day basis."
Milito injured his knee during Barcelona's semifinal second leg Champions League match at Manchester United on April 29.
"We proceeded by extracting the tendon from his left knee to incorporate it into the injured knee, the right one," Cugat explained.
Milito will miss Argentina's World Cup qualifying matches against Paraguay and Peru in June with further games against Uruguay and Chile in October also unlikely. Milito made 40 appearances since a ?20 million (US$31 million) offseason move from Zaragoza.
Also Tuesday, midifielder Yaya Toure had surgery for a slipped disk and is expected to miss six-to-eight weeks.
