Ciantar facing surgery after knee injury

Floriana FC and Malta international wing-back Ian Ciantar suffered a severe blow to his career last Sunday after damaging cruciate ligaments and cartilage in his right knee during a Premier League match at the Centenary Stadium.

Ciantar, 28, lost his balance in midfield on the tricky artificial turf pitch at Ta' Qali just before the half-hour mark in the match against Pietà Hotspurs. He fell awkwardly and twisted his knee and had to be stretchered off by the medical staff in attendance.

The luckless right-back, currently on a one-season loan from Sliema Wanderers, was quickly establishing himself as a permanent fixture in Horst Heese's starting XI for the national team after recovering from a similar injury setback on his left knee last year.

Ciantar is now waiting for an appointment with a sports injury specialist in Belgium. He will probably go under the knife once again in three weeks' time and then ordered to start a slow and frustrating recovery which could take between six and seven months to complete. His season is definitely over.

"This mishap was unexpected and hit me really bad," Ciantar told The Times yesterday. "I thought I had seen it all with my other serious injury and surgery last year. I'm a bit down at the moment.

"I was in great shape and enjoying myself playing for club and country. I guess, now I will have to start all over again.

"I'm not giving up though but deep down I know it will be hard to get back to form and regain full confidence."

Ciantar reckons he could have avoided injury had Premier League matches been played away from the much-maligned Centenary Stadium.

"We are more prone to injury than others on artificial turf pitches," he said. "Our season is split over three grass pitches at Ta' Qali, Hamrun and Hibs and occasionally we have to play on artificial turf.

"Unlike others, we're not accustomed to this particular kind of surface because we don't play regularly there. Mine is not the first case of Premier League players sustaining serious injuries. Some players simply refuse to play there for fear of getting hurt. Perhaps, the game organisers should now see to this problem with urgency and avoid having other players suffering a similar fate like mine."

Floriana coach Willie Vassallo was equally annoyed with the situation.

"I was told about players who got injured on that surface before," he said, "but I never really imagined it could repeat itself.

"I mean, this is 2004... how could anyone let this happen?

"We always talk about seeing our football improving. There are few resources around, we all know that, but in the same time we can afford to lose someone of Ian's calibre.

"This is a big loss for Floriana, the national team and the Premier League. It seems there's no respect for players any more these days."

Asked about any possible replacements in the January transfer window, Vassallo said the club will have to do something to make up for Ciantar's absence.

"We were already discussing the possibility of adding a couple of mature players to the squad before Ian's injury," he said.

"We've got a promising squad at Floriana but we lack the required experience at this level. Now, one of our most represented players will be out for the rest of the season. It will be difficult to find a suitable replacement.

"Surely, we have to analyse the situation carefully and see what adequate measures we can take to keep things moving."