Stoke City have been dealt a major blow as playmaker Bojan Krkic has been ruled out for the rest of the season.
The exciting Spanish playmaker, who has been a revelation since arriving at the Britannia Stadium from Roma last summer, ruptured his cruciate ligament in his left knee during Stoke’s 4-1 FA Cup fourth round victory over League One side Rochdale on Monday and the 24-year-old requires season-ending surgery.
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In a brief statement on the club website, Stoke announced the Spaniard will miss the rest of the 2014-15 campaign as he’s likely to be out for at least six months.STOKE CITY can confirm Bojan will miss the remainder of the season after sustaining a knee ligament injury in last night’s FA Cup win over Rochdale.
The Spanish forward opened the scoring after just four minutes at Rochdale as the Potters ran out 4-1 winners but limped out of the action in the 32nd minute after collapsing while challenging for the ball.
Scans have revealed he suffered a ruptured cruciate ligament in his left knee and will have to undergo surgery.
Manager Mark Hughes said: “It’s bitterly disappointing for the Club but even more so for Bojan himself as he was making such a big impact on the Premier League and clearly enjoying his football. We wish him a speedy recovery.”
Bojan has scored five goals in 18 appearances for Stoke during his debut season in England and has caught the eye with his flamboyant displays.
Mark Hughes performed a masterstroke to get the player formerly known as “the next Lionel Messi” to join Stoke last summer, as the former Barca star kick-started his career after spells at AS Roma, AC Milan and Ajax failed to get the best out of his mercurial talents.
One of the most talented players in the PL will be sorely missed, as his creativity adds a whole new dimension to Stoke.