Everton manager Roberto Martinez has confirmed to the BBC that centre midfielder Ross Barkley may miss five months of the Premier League season with a knee injury.
20 year old Barkley impressed for Everton last season, and his manager confirmed that a scan has shown that he could miss five months, in what will be a bitter blow for Everton’s campaign.
Speaking to the BBC following Everton’s 2-2 opening day draw at newly promoted Leicester City, the Spaniard stated: “Anything from seven weeks to four or five months”.
“With the swelling we don’t really know how bad the injury is,” he added.
“He had a scan but it was a bit difficult to determine the extent.”
Barkley’s fine performances for the Goodison Park club earned him a new four year deal at the Toffees, and a World Cup finals appearance in Brazil this summer.
Any long term injury could see him miss the majority of the campaign, with Barkley scoring six Premier League goals in 34 appearances last season.
Martinez then stated that Barkley will be a huge miss for his side.
“Ross Barkley is a phenomenal footballer and we’re going to miss him, there’s no doubt about it,” said Martinez.
“He was very unfortunate to sustain the injury through an innocuous challenge in training and now he’s going to be out for a long, long time.
“The squad should be big enough to be able to cope with losing a player, but it’s a disappointing moment when Ross Barkley was going to have a really big start to the season.”
By Ben Reardon
@BenReardon1
