Everton say Onyekuru will return soon and needs no surgery

[Ayo Akinfe]

Everton confirm Super Eagles winger Onyekuru will not need surgery and will be back in action soon - See more at: https://goo.gl/UtwvVy

[Mr Shows]

Not Uhuru that he will make the WC squad but very good news.

[maceo4]

This guy, where did Everton confirm that he doesn't need surgery? You are just lifting some of Onyekuru's quotes from the Everton website (http://www.evertonfc.com/news/2018/01/2 ... at-everton), but that report didn't say he doesn't need surgery, just that the injury is not as severe as initially thought and he will likely be back in Belgium with a few weeks left in the season:

Henry Onyekuru says the “love” he has received from everybody at Everton will help him “recover even more quickly” from the knee injury he suffered last month.

Nigeria international forward Onyekuru joined the Blues from Belgian top-flight team Eupen during the summer, before being loaned out to Anderlecht for the 2017/18 campaign.

He struck 22 goals for his former club last term – a tally equalled only by champions Anderlecht’s formidable striker Łukasz Teodorczyk.

And Onyekuru continued in similar vein this term, blasting nine goals in 14 league starts for his temporary employers, as well as featuring for Anderlecht in the Champions League against giant trio Bayern Munich, Paris Saint-Germain and Celtic.

He was, however, cut down mid-flight when he collided with goalkeeper Hendrik Van Crombrugge in an encounter with former team Eupen three days before Christmas.

Onyekuru initially feared he was set for an extended layoff, which would have ruled him out of the summer’s World Cup finals in Russia.

But the 20-year-old’s diagnosis has softened since he returned to Everton to follow his rehabilitation programme – and the player is harbouring hopes of being back on the pitch before the end of this campaign.

“It is amazing here,” Onyekuru told evertonfc.com. “The people are good people, always friendly and showing care. I feel love and with that love I will recover even more quickly.

“When I first got injured the whole picture was quite bad, but fortunately it was not as severe as we first feared… so, hopefully, I will be back and ready to play before the end of the season.

“The first aim is to get back and finish the season in Belgium. There will be a few weeks of the league season remaining, so it makes sense for me to end the season there and prepare for the World Cup.

“When I got knocked by the goalkeeper I felt so bad and was worried.

“But since I came here and started having my treatment I have been happy. I am smiling every day.”


Onyekuru’s star has been on the rise since he arrived in European football with Eupen in summer 2015.

His six goals in four matches late in his first campaign were instrumental to his small club winning promotion into Belgium’s Pro League for only the second time in their history.

He was converted to a left-sided forward in the following 2016/17 season and plundered the 22 goals which led to him being one of the continent’s hottest properties last summer.

Onyekuru grew up in Africa besotted by Premier League football – and watching countrymen Daniel Amokachi, Joseph Yobo, Yakubu Aiyegbeni and Victor Anichebe cementing their status as Goodison Park favourites.

Consequently, he had no hesitation in choosing Everton as his next destination – and resolved to use his season with Anderlecht to steel him for the demands of playing in England… and for the Blues, in particular.

“That is the big difference between Eupen and Anderlecht – when you play in a top club like Anderlecht you have to win,” said Onyekuru, who penned a five-year deal when he moved to Merseyside back in June.

“Of course, you do lose some games but if you do… you have to lose fighting. That will help me cope with expectations at Everton.

“My main objective in Anderlecht was to do more than I did last season and to get that Champions League experience.

“I am learning every day, so to play in that competition and against those teams was so valuable for me.

“My first aim was to sign for a Premier League club. That has been my dream since I was a little boy.

“I had a couple of offers but I said to myself, ‘it has to be the Premier League’. It is not just the game, it is the passion people in this country have for football.

“Everton is a club that wants to win and always fights. With the facilities, staff and coaches here, I think they can really help me develop even further.”