Brazilian international attacking midfielder Philippe Coutinho, limping in injury time against Eibar on Tuesday evening (1-1) in La Liga, suffers from an external meniscus injury in his left knee that requires surgery, Barcelona announced.
"The tests carried out revealed that Coutinho has an injury to the external meniscus of his left knee. The treatment requires arthroscopic surgery which will be performed in the next few days," Barça said in its statement.
Coutinho had already been out for a month between the end of October and the end of November with a hamstring injury in his left thigh.
Coutinho (28) returned to Barca last summer after a year on loan at Bayern Munich, having played 14 games this season in all competitions, with three goals and two assists.
It rains in the wet at Barcelona, after the very opaque draw with Eibar and the momentary, disappointing sixth place in the La Liga standings, at -7 from the pair of Madrid teams.
Philippe Coutinho keeps the fans and the club anxious after the injury suffered in the early yesterday evening: the Brazilian left the pitch limping and, as reported by the Mundo Deportivo, must undergo an MRI that will have the task of establishing the exact extent of the knee damage.
The first diagnosis speaks of injury to the external meniscus of the left knee, the coach Ronald Koeman remained vague in the press conference, but the fears are other.
The playmaker of the blaugrana could have suffered even more serious damage and the exams will eventually have to verify it.
However, surgery on the player's leg is very likely.
For Coutinho this is the second stop, after one month due to a problem with his left hamstring during the 'Clasico'.