Hatem Ben Arfa suffers double leg break
Newcastle United midfield player Hatem Ben Arfa suffered a double leg break during the 2-1 defeat at Manchester City Sunday.
The Frenchman went down under a challenge from Nigel De Jong. It was clear through the reaction of the Newcastle man and other players that the impact had caused a horrible injury.
"He will undergo surgery immediately. Everyone connected with the club sends Hatem their best wishes for a speedy recovery. At this stage no time limit has been put on his expected return date," said a
Newcastle United statement.
The news will come as a huge blow to everyone at Newcastle because of the good start Ben Arfa has made since joining the club. Further confirmation on the extent of the injury will come later this week.
A huge blow
Ben Arfa has been controlling the left wing of the Newcastle team since he arrived on loan from Marseille. His goal and performance away at Everton showed the quality he possesses and his absence will
have an impact on the team.
Fortunately Newcastle has cover in the wide areas of the team. Argentina midfielder Jonas Gutierrez can play down either wing and may be asked to play the left midfield role for the foreseeable future.
Gutierrez can be just as effective in an attacking sense.
Ben Arfa is likely to be out for most of the season regardless of how well the initial surgery goes. He may be released from his loan deal with Newcastle to go back and recover fully in France. However,
this will only happen if there's no chance of him playing for Newcastle again.
"It's a solemn changing room in there at the moment. We've had a couple of real downers, but we've a spirited dressing room and these things make everybody a bit closer," added Newcastle boss Chris Hughton.
Betting advice
There is no reason to change main betting patterns with Newcastle. The club should still be safe this season. Back Ben Arfa's replacement to play well and score in the club's next game. He will have a
chance that wouldn't have been expected.
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