Cruel blow for Watford as January signing suffers ACL injury
Watford winger Mauro Zarate has revealed he suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury against West Ham on Saturday.
The Argentinian, a January signing from Fiorentina, twisted his knee awkwardly towards the end of the first half of the 1-1 draw against his former club.
Zarate required oxygen and nine minutes of treatment on the pitch before he was carried off on a stretcher and taken to hospital for scans.
And on Sunday the 29-year-old revealed the extent of the damage in an Instagram post.
He wrote: “With sadness I inform you that the results show the following: anterior cruciate ligament rupture plus an injury grade 1 of medial collateral ligament.
“I will face this with all my strength and will be back stronger than before.”
Zarate was making just his third appearance for the Hornets and earned the penalty with which Troy Deeney opened the scoring, but he now faces a lengthy spell on the sidelines.