Napoli have confirmed Faouzi Ghoulam will undergo surgery on Friday after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in his knee against Manchester City.
Ghoulam was forced off 31 minutes in Napoli’s clash with City on Wednesday night when his side were 1-0 up and dominating proceedings.
The 26-year-old’s departure offset a huge swing in momentum and City eventually ran out 4-2 winners in Naples.
Things have now gone from bad to worse for Maurizio Sarri’s side, with Ghoulam now set to miss most of the season with a serious knee injury.
The Algeria international’s current Napoli deal is due to expire at the end of the season and City were interested in making a January move for his services following Benjamin Mendy’s own knee injury back in September.
However, Pep Guardiola will now have to scrap those plans with Ghoulam set for a long stint on the sidelines.
Ghoulam had made a stunning start to the season and his absence will be a huge blow to Napoli’s chances of maintaining their lead at the top of Serie A.
In fact, only Aleksandar Kolarov (7.77) has earned a higher WhoScored rating than Ghoulam (7.65) of all defenders in Europe’s top five leagues this season.
