The Portland Timbers announced Tuesday that star midfielder Diego Valeri will undergo surgery to repair a torn ACL in his left knee, and that he will miss at least five months of action.
Valeri suffered the injury in the 26th minute of the team’s 2-0 win over FC Dallas on Saturday in a collision with FCD’s Andres Escobar. Valeri was taken out of the game at halftime.
The surgery will be performed by Dr. Richard Edelson at Sports Medicine Oregon in Tigard, Ore.
In his second season with the Timbers, Valeri, 28, played in 33 games (32 starts), establishing Timbers MLS-club single-season record marks with 11 goals and 14 assists, including three multi-assist performances.
Valeri was named a 2014 MLS All-Star and delivered the game-winning assist in a 2-1 victory over FC Bayern Munich on Aug. 6 at Providence Park.
This will be the second consecutive season Valeri will be forced to recover from surgery. He underwent an operation to repair a sports hernia in December 2013, a procedure that required roughly five weeks to recover before he joined the Timbers in time for the preseason.
