Diop to undergo surgery
Tuesday, December 3, 2002
Article summary
RC Lens' Pape Bouba Diop will undergo pelvic surgery which will sideline him until February.
Article body
RC Lens midfield player Pape Bouba Diop will undergo pelvic surgery on Thursday which will keep him out of action until February.
Out till new year
Diop limped out of Lens's 2-1 UEFA Champions League win against AC Milan at the end of October and the injury has not responded to treatment so it became clear that surgery was necessary. By the time Diop returns to action Lens, who trail FC Porto 3-0 going in to the second leg of their third-round tie next week, are likely to have been eliminated from the UEFA Cup.
Key figure for Senegal
The 24-year-old will be operated on in Strasbourg by the same surgeon who operated on Arsenal FC's Robert Pires earlier this year. Pires has since gone on to make a full recovery. Diop, a former Grasshopper-Club player, was an integral part of Senegal's FIFA World Cup team last summer and scored three goals, including the winner against France in the tournament's opening match.
