Demiral faces lengthy lay-off following successful knee surgery

Juventus has announced that central defender Merih Demiral will be out for up to seven months after undergoing surgery for damaged cruciate knee ligaments.

The 21-year-old Turkish international broke down just 19 minutes into last weekend’s 2-1 win over Roma at the Stadio Olimpico and now his participation in this summer’s European Championships is in serious doubt.

Demiral had been courted by Leicester City, but a turnaround in recent form has seen Old Lady boss boss Maurizio Sarri prefer him to big summer signing Matthijs de Ligt. The player travelled to Innsbruck for treatment to his injury and Professor Christian Fink told reporters late on Tuesday that although the operation had been a complete success, Demiral would certainly be out for at least six-seven months as he begins his rehabilitation.

Turkey will play Italy in the opening game of Euro 2020 in Rome on June 12 and the youngster now faces what looks likely to be an impossible race against time to be available for his country.