Scott Brown faces an extended spell on the sidelines after learning he will need a second operation on his injured ankle. The midfielder was told he requires further surgery after visiting a specialist in Holland this week.
According to a report in the Daily Record, Brown will now face another two months out and is unlikely to feature for the Celtic first team before February. The player has missed his club’s last six matches and Tony Mowbray’s side have struggled in his absence.
Brown had travelled to Amsterdam in an attempt to get to the bottom of the problem that has plagued him since last season. Dutch specialist Niek van Dijk, who recently treated Cristiano Ronaldo for a similar complaint, told the midfielder the only solution to the injury was further surgery.
Celtic had previously attempted to cure the ongoing problem by resting the midfielder where possible and Brown had withdrawn from the last two Scotland squads as a result. A series of steroid injections to the ankle had failed to provide a cure and prompted Brown to visit the specialist.
Celtic manager Tony Mowbray had said on Saturday that Brown may be out of action until the New Year but insisted that the welfare of the player was the most important factor at this stage.
“We’ve got to do what is the very, very best for him and make sure that we put his welfare first before anything, but we are canvassing a few opinions from various specialists at the moment," said Mowbray.
The news rules Brown out of the New Year Old Firm game and could see him miss as many as 10 more SPL games as Celtic fight to claim the SPL title.
The midfielder, valued at £4million, had been linked with moves to a number of high-profile clubs in the January transfer window but is now unlikely to make any move until the long-standing injury has cleared up.
Last updated: 27 November 2009, 09:15
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