Just as Stefano Pioli was getting ready to welcome Mike Maignan back into the fold for Saturday’s game against Monza, news emerged yesterday of a new injury for the goalkeeper.
La Gazzetta dello Sport (via MilanNews) reports how it became clear that the same calf was impacted as the one that forced him to miss the last few games, but it was a different muscle so that means the French goalkeeper now has to restart the recovery process and even risks missing the World Cup.
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It is unlikely therefore that Milan will be able to call upon Maignan again before 2023, which is a shame given that the former Lille star declared a few days ago that he even wanted to play against Hellas Verona but chose not to under advice from the medical staff and to avoid re-aggravating it.
He will not be fit to play against Monza or Dinamo Zagreb as his next check will be after those two games, but the feeling is he will not be available to Pioli until January 2023 when the season resumes after the World Cup.
Maignan’s problem will be re-evaluated in 10 days, which is the eve of the crucial match against Red Bull Salzburg in the Champions League. After that match there are only three league games left to play in a week.
Then the 27-year-old will be at a crossroads: he either risks playing maybe the last game against Fiorentina to show Didier Deschamps that he is ready to go to Qatar, or he stays at home to recover fully.
It will therefore be up to Ciprian Tatarusanu to step up again, and the Romanian certainly has experience given he has played all games since the match in Empoli.
