When Gabriel Jesus’ went off with a knee injury during Manchester City’s 0-0 draw with Crystal Palace on New Year’s Eve, there was a huge amount of worry among Citizens fans.
Since going off in tears that day, rumours have swirled about the extent of the youngster’s injury. with Twitter’s thousands of amateur knee surgeons weighing in with their invaluable opinions.
One thing that has been confirmed – by the player himself no less – is that he suffered a medial collateral ligament injury which would likely keep him out for a number of weeks.
Today I went through an image exam on my left knee that diagnosed a small medial colateral ligament injury! Thanks God, I won’t have to go through any surgery procedure. Thanks for all the fans support and positive thoughts! Happy new year! 2018 is going to be my year!!!🙌🏼🙏🏼 pic.twitter.com/10n7JhFzPb
— Gabriel Jesus (@gabrieljesus9) January 1, 2018
The player described it as a “small injury”, but that hasn’t brought an end to speculation that the damage could be much greater, with the most recent update coming last night from Spanish journalist Jose Alvarez.
In a tweet posted late on January 7, Alvarez suggests that the 20-year-old will soon undergo tests to investigate the possibility of a ligament rupture – an injury which, if true, would likely leave Jesus incapacitated beyond the summer’s World Cup.
Gabriel Jesus will have a new medical test next week for discarding a anterior cruciate ligament break. In the club are not 100% sure about the real extent of his injury. The resolution of this test will be important for signing or not signing in January. https://t.co/MAeCD4xnTE
— Jose Alvarez Haya (@10JoseAlvarez) January 7, 2018
This account, however, has seemingly been debunked by Brazilian writer Lucas Sposito. Less than 30 minutes after Alvarez’ post, Sposito confirmed that he had spoken to the player’s agent, who outright denied any suggestions of a ligament rupture.
Just spoke to Gabriel Jesus's agent, been told that the suspicion of ligament rupture is not true. @Sport_Witness
— Lucas Sposito (@LucasSposito_) January 7, 2018
If this account is true, it will be welcome news for Manchester City and Brazil fans, and could well mean that Jesus could be back on the pitch within a number of weeks.
The truth remains though that only time will tell, and we won’t truly know the severity of Gabriel Jesus’ injury until official word comes out.
