Miedema was seriously injured last Thursday during the Champions League match with Arsenal against Olympique Lyonnais at the Emirates Stadium. She was carried from the field, crying, on a stretcher just before half-time. At the time, the Orange’s all-time leading scorer suspected what she now knows for certain: a torn ACL.
The striker will undergo surgery later this week. Arsenal said that once the operation is complete, a detailed timetable for her rehabilitation will be drawn up. A full recovery from such a serious injury usually takes an outstanding athlete six to nine months. The first ever Orange World Cup match between Australia and New Zealand is scheduled to take place on July 23 in Dunedin, New Zealand. That’s more than seven months.
It is therefore uncertain if Miedema will recover in time to play her third World Cup final with Orange. The Netherlands are in a group with the United States and Vietnam, a country that has yet to qualify for the World Cup through the play-offs. This country is Orange’s first opponent.
Miedema has previously expressed concern about the many injuries in both men’s and women’s football. She believes the playing schedule is too full and advocates for less stress on professional soccer players. Miedema himself took a short break in the last period and missed the Arsenal match. So she seemed to be recovering and adjusting for another long season with club and international football, but she was still seriously injured.
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