Roma have confirmed that midfielder Kevin Strootman must again undergo surgery on his knee, news which is a big blow to the Dutchman.
Strootman, who has regularly been linked with Manchester United, suffered a cruciate knee ligament injury early last year, an injury that kept him out of the second half of the 2013/14 Serie A season and saw him miss the World Cup.
The Netherlands international only returned to action in November, easing himself into the cut and thrust of Serie A. However, last weekend he had to be substituted after complaining of pain in his knee.
Now Roma have announced in a statement: "Yesterday Strootman had further clinical advice from professors Van Dijk and Kerkhoffs.
"During the visit a mass of fibrous tissue was found and its removal through arthroscopy recommended.
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"The surgery will be performed tomorrow in Amsterdam and after the occasion it will be possible to evaluate the status of the ligament."
It is thought Strootman is likely to be out of action for at least four weeks, with a fibrous tissue issue often cropping up with cruciate knee ligament injuries.
Roma will cross their fingers that nothing more serious is uncovered, while the incident again casts doubt on whether Manchester United, consistently linked with Strootman, will launch a bid in the summer.
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