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Van der Vaart to have exploratory surgery
12 February: Ajax.nl reports that Rafael van der Vaart will
undergo surgery tomorrow morning in Amsterdam's V.U. Hospital.
His right knee will be examined in order to determine the
severity of the injury sustained in Sunday's victory at RKC Waalwijk.
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| Rafael van der Vaart [Photo: ANP] |
Van der Vaart twisted his knee in the second half, and was
substituted shortly thereafter; he was able to walk off the
pitch unassisted. Van der Vaart was recently selected by
Holland's U21 coach Mark Wotte for Young Oranje's game against
Italy-U21 on Sunday, but has had to withdraw from that game due
to the injury.
Van der Vaart's right knee was examined at V.U. Hospital on
Tuesday morning, only one day after the midfielder's 19th
birthday. According to NOS Teletekst and VI Planet.nl, the
X-rays showed a small tear in the right knee's cartilage.
Earlier today, regional radio station RTV Noord-Holland
announced that Van der Vaart will be sidelined for at least
three weeks.
In that case, Van der Vaart would be sure to miss Ajax' away
games at AZ (17 February) and NAC (24 February), whereas his
participation in the away game at Fortuna Sittard (27 February)
and the crucial home game against Feyenoord (03 March) would be
very doubtful.
However, Ajax.nl does not confirm the nature or
extent of the injury, and stresses that tomorrow's surgery is
just for observation. The extent of the injury is yet to be
determined, according to the official Ajax website, Ajax.nl.
(MP)
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