Boca Juniors idol Juan Román Riquelme will not play competitively until the new year, after a muscle tear ruled the veteran playmaker out of the last two fixtures of the Inicial tournament.
A medical report released today by the club confirmed that Riquelme had suffered a tear in the left abductor muscle, which will sideline the player from training for at least three weeks.
With just two games remaining in 2013, this means that he will not play again until the start of the Final championship, at the start of 2014.
The injury, Román’s fifth of the year, occurred 15 minutes into the first half of yesterday’s game against All Boys. The star was replaced by Leandro Paredes, and Boca went on to lose 2-0 at home in a result that constitutes a serious blow to their hopes of winning the Inicial.
With six points left to play, and without their talismanic playmaker, Boca lie four points adrift of leaders San Lorenzo. The Xeneize visit Lanús next weekend, before closing their campaign in the Bombonera at home to Gimnasia de La Plata.
Source: Buenos Aires Herald