Injury-prone Brazilian star Ronaldo has postponed his comeback from a muscle
injury suffered before the start of the season, La Gazzetta dello Sport reported
Tuesday.
The AC Milan striker, 31, pulled a muscle in his left thigh in late July as he
kicked a ball during a meeting with fans.
Although Milan doctors expected a prompt recovery, Ronaldo has been unavailable
for the European champions for the first seven games of the Italian Serie A and
also missed two Champions League games.
After being examined by specialists in Belgium and Brazil, he planned a
tentative comeback for next weekend against Empoli, but it now seems that his
fans won’t see him on the pitch before October 28, when the Devils welcome Roma
in Milan. ‘‘We have already made a mistake and we don’t want to repeat it,
therefore we want to be as careful and calm as possible,’ he said.
‘Before returning, I want to be sure that everything is fine, but I am not
saying it is a long-term recovery programme. We are almost done.’
Ronaldo joined Milan in January from Real Madrid, where he arrived in 2002 after
five seasons at Inter Milan.
Two career-threatening injuries marked his stint at Inter, where he scored 59
goals in 100 games despite twice undergoing knee surgery.
Since his debut with Brazilian side Cruzeiro in 1993, Ronaldo has scored 284
goals in 411 games. He was a young substitute when Brazil won the 1994 World Cup
but was crucial for his country in the 2002 success. |