The surgeon who operated on Kevin Strootman's troubled left knee has vowed that the Roma midfielder will make a full recovery.
Strootman, 25, has undergone surgery for the third time in a bid to bring his 18-month injury agony to an end. He tore his cruciate ligament in March 2014 and two attempts to return have failed.
The Netherlands international announced on Twitter on Tuesday that he had decided to undergo surgery once again because of a "lack of power" in his knee, despite taking part in preseason for Roma in a bid to be fit for the start of the season.
"He will be back playing again -- this is a promise I make as a surgeon and half as a fan," Dr Pierpaolo Mariani said according to Il Corriere dello Sport. "He had some instability in his knee so we decided to perform a revision of the previous operation.
"The cruciate ligament has been reconstructed using his right tendon and now he will continue with his plan of recovery, which will be determined by myself and Roma's medical staff together. I'm pleased with the operation, but we need two months to see if it was a success because a surgeon can never know immediately.
"After a player has not played for a year and a half, it is hard to set a precise timeframe."
Despite his "huge disappointment" at the setback, Strootman added that he hopes to return to the pitch as soon as possible.
There has been a lot of speculation in the media about my rehabilitation. Unfortunately due to a lack of power...1/4 pic.twitter.com/OeUqvAYB0J
- Kevin Strootman (@Kevin_strootman) September 1, 2015
in my left leg I cannot compete at the highest level right now. The last few weeks we have consulted many top professors all over the...2/4
- Kevin Strootman (@Kevin_strootman) September 1, 2015
and they and the medical staff of AS Roma have advised me to reconstruct the existing acl into another position in order for me to have..3/4
- Kevin Strootman (@Kevin_strootman) September 1, 2015
less problems with my knee in the future and to regain my power again. I will undergo surgery this morning. 4/4
- Kevin Strootman (@Kevin_strootman) September 1, 2015
I am hugely disappointed that I cannot contribute to AS Roma and the Dutch National Team for the next few months...1/2
- Kevin Strootman (@Kevin_strootman) September 1, 2015
but I will do everything to get back on the pitch as soon as possible. 2/2
- Kevin Strootman (@Kevin_strootman) September 1, 2015
His last appearance came on Jan. 25 in a 1-1 draw with Fiorentina. He had to leave the field injured after just over half an hour and has not played since.