Julian Draxler looks likely to be out for three months with a torn tendon in his hamstring – making a January move to Arsenal unlikely.
This week has seen plenty of speculation surrounding the already uncertain future of Schalke 04 playmaker Julian Draxler.
Despite previous assertions that he would not be going anywhere until the summer – apparent interest in bringing Lewis Holtby back to Gelsenkirchen this month has seen rumours of a potential switch in the winter pick up momentum.
The starlet has a €45 million release clause in his contract – however that does not come into effect until the summer. Despite this it was believed Schalke would do business for a similar price this month – which saw Arsenal reportedly ready a move.
The links with Draxler are always very credible. The star has been on a tour of the Arsenal training ground and a couple of months ago stated a desire to possibly join his German team-mates Per Mertesacker, Lukas Podolski and Ozil:
“You never know what happens in the summer but Arsenal is a very, very nice team. They always have very young players, they play attractive football and that’s what I like.”
However, a move in the summer now appears more likely than ever. It has been confirmed today that Draxler is set to be out until March with a ruptured tendon in his hamstring.
On the day when Schalke were given a huge boost from the treatment room regarding Klaas Jan Huntelaar’s return to action – things quickly went downhill and the player is now reported in the Daily Mail as being on his way to Munich for specialist treatment on his hamstring.
He was originally ruled out for just a month with the problem – after limping out of a 2-0 victory against FC Basel in the Champions’ League Group Stage.
But it seems the injury was more serious than first feared – and any January move will surely be put on ice until the summer.
image: © achimh
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