Well, it’s official now.
Ekuban has had an operation on a broken bone in his foot. Looking at a recovery period of eight weeks/two months. #lufc
— Phil Hay (@PhilHayYEP) September 5, 2017
The Yorkshire Evening Post is reporting that Leeds United striker is facing two months out recovering from surgery. He was injured during the Sunderland match, although the club had remained mum on his status for the past couple of weeks. The club has finally revealed that Ekuban had broken his foot, although he had been spotted on crutches during the Newport County League Cup match, leading to speculation on his status. The surgery means that he will be out for at least two months, and the club is hopeful that he will be able to return to full fitness and first team action around Christmas.
As we said before the transfer deadline day, reports from Ghana indicated that Ekuban was set to go under the knife to repair what Ghanasoccer.net called a “bone injury” and while the source seems a bit dodgy, they’ve been nothing but accurate when it comes to news about Ekuban, as they were one of the first that Ekuban was set for a swtich from Chievo Verona to Leeds during the summer transfer window. They also had reported that Ekuban had undergone surgery already, and it appears that the club has finally decided to confirm the rumors.
So where does this leave Leeds in regards to the striker position?
In our profile of what the striker position looks like after Chris Wood’s big money move to Burnley, we noted that the club has five different strikers looking for playing time right now, and the absence of Ekuban for at least the next two months will not make a huge difference right now. He’s largely unproven at this level, and although he did score against Port Vale in the League Cup and put in a good shift against Sunderland, he’s not going to be missed after the club has brought in three additional strikers and have move Kemar Roofe to his preferred position.
We wish Ekuban all the best in his recovery, and hope that he is able to challenge the other strikers for playing time after he comes back.