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Earlier this month, Jude Bellingham suffered a shoulder dislocation while in action for Real Madrid against Rayo Vallecano.
The problem was not seen as a major one, but it did lead to the 20-year-old midfielder missing games against SC Braga and Valencia, while he also sat out of England’s fixtures in the international break.
Bellingham made a return to action last weekend when Los Blancos faced Cadiz in La Liga and even contributed with a goal.
It was backed up by another stellar performance last night against Napoli, capped off with a goal and an assist.
Bellingham considering surgery
While Bellingham may have returned to action and made key contributions, the Real Madrid talisman’s shoulder problem is still not completely dealt with.
As such, the 20-year-old Englishman and the club are considering the possibility of him undergoing surgery to fix the issue, reports Mario Cortegana of The Athletic.
Even though a final decision is yet to be made, the report states that there is a good chance that Bellingham will indeed go under the knife to get rid of his shoulder problem.
As per the report, the midfielder played with shoulder protection against Cadiz over the weekend and there were moments when some discomfort was seen.
As such, the possibility of surgery is very much on the table, but no definitive timeline is set for the same.
A medical staff source told The Athletic that conservative treatment is the first course of action, but “once a shoulder is out, the player will feel pain and this pain usually does not repair itself.”
The source also added that Bellingham would likely have surgery sooner or later, but insisted that he could “wait a day, a week, a season or longer”. They continued: “You can live with it as long as you can deal with it. Then you have to operate.”
Brahim Diaz to undergo surgery
Intriguingly, Bellingham’s Real Madrid teammate, Brahim Diaz, also suffered a shoulder dislocation earlier in the season, in September.
The 24-year-old has carried on playing despite the issue, but as per the report, the Spaniard is set to undergo surgery once the season is over, giving him time to recover without missing games.
What remains to be seen is if Bellingham also follows the same path, although it must be taken into consideration that he will have to play for England at the UEFA Euro 2024.
