Leeds United supporters were dismayed by the news that summer signing Robin Koch could be ruled out of action for some time after the decision was made for him to undergo knee surgery.
The procedure is to be carried out in London under the watch of Andy Williams, an expert in his field who has previously repaired scores of famous athletes' ailing knees.
Koch's injury is understood to be a meniscus problem, according to German outlet BILD, which is a fairly common injury for knee surgeons to deal with amongst high-level professional athletes.
In essence, it is a cartilage injury which is connecting tissue between the shin bone and thigh bone. Koch initially sustained the knock in the 4-3 defeat to Liverpool at the beginning of the season, but due to the nature of the problem, was able to play through with some mild discomfort.
He revealed to BILD that "sooner or later" he and the medical staff at Leeds knew he would need to undergo a surgical procedure at some point. The aggravation he sustained against Chelsea means that process has been accelerated, and the German went under the knife this morning at the Fortius Clinic in London.
The Clinic is renowned for its services to high-level athletes, with founder Andy Williams having helped the likes of Andy Carroll, Danny Welbeck, Theo Walcott and John Terry back to full fitness following surgery.
Williams is a specialist in this field and became the club's first-choice surgeon after coronavirus restrictions denied them the opportunity to have Koch's knee fixed by Austria-based sports traumatology expert Christian Fink.
Fink counts Bayern Munich duo Leroy Sane and Joshua Kimmich as recent outpatients, and is just as qualified as Williams.
There is no doubting the surgeons' ability, and it is likely Koch will be back on the pitch by the time spring 2021 rolls around, although a timeframe for the German's recovery is yet to be finalised. That will not be disclosed officially until the surgery has been completed.
One thing is certain though, Koch will be missing for Leeds United in the Premier League for the first time this weekend ahead of West Ham United's visit.
Already some supporters have raised concerns over whether Leeds are tall enough or physical enough to contend with the might of West Ham's comparably lofty team.
Tomas Soucek, Seb Haller, Issa Diop and Declan Rice are all wily competitors in both penalty areas and may target Leeds at set pieces now that their 6ft 3in centre-back will miss the action at Elland Road.
