Juventus midfielder Sami Khedira ruled out of Italian Super Cup
ByFootballItalia
Updated 01/08/2015 at 19:43 GMT
Max Allegri confirms Sami Khedira is out against Lazio, but “expected more problems” in a 2-0 defeat to Olympique Marseille.
Sami Khedira
Image credit: Imago
The former Real Madrid midfielder suddenly pulled up clutching the back of his right thigh just 25 minutes into a friendly against Olympique Marseille.
He was clearly in agony and was carefully carried away by the medical staff.
There was no contact with other players, so everything points towards a hamstring or thigh strain.
It was a disappointing display at the Stade Velodrome, especially as Khedira was stretchered off and Stephan Lichtsteiner saw red for dissent.
“The first 20 minutes were very good against a team that is at a far more advanced stage of pre-season training and attacked us all over the field,” the Coach told Sky Sport Italia.
“We had some good passing moves and created several scoring opportunities, but then we allowed a couple of counter-attacks and conceded a fortuitous goal.
“Obviously after going down to 10 men, it became difficult to get back into the game.”
Khedira was stretchered off with a suspected hamstring strain and there are fears he’ll be out for four to six weeks.
“It’s a shame for Khedira, who unfortunately had been inactive for a while and therefore paid for it with an injury. He was doing well, so we have lost an important player.”
The German midfielder joins Andrea Barzagli and Giorgio Chiellini in missing the Italian Super Cup against Lazio in Shanghai next Saturday.
“Khedira certainly won’t be there for the Super Cup, but I am happy with the reaction from the lads, the way they were set out and at times we played good football.
“It’s only normal to be behind at this point, but I honestly thought Marseille would give us a lot more problems today. I’d say we did pretty well.
"Injuries were a calculated risk, as we needed these tough matches to help us prepare for Shanghai."
Allegri was asked if he now regretted letting Arturo Vidal go to Bayern Munich.
"No, we made this decision and we do have excellent players. It just requires a little patience."
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