Kvaratskhelia ruptures ACL and will miss the rest of the season

The former Napoli winger got hurt in PSG's 4-2 Champions League win over Barcelona and faces around 9 months out. His old club sent him a message of support.

by Gennaro SanninoWednesday 21 October, 19:06 CET· 23 hours ago

Kvaratskhelia, crociato rotto e stagione finita. Il Napoli: «Ti aspettiamo presto di nuovo in campo» — Grafica Arena Napoli

Kvaratskhelia has ruptured the anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee. His 2026-27 season is over.

The injury came in a Champions League match that PSG went on to win 4-2 against Barcelona. The Paris side's left winger went off early in the second half. Then came the diagnosis no footballer wants to hear.

PSG have confirmed that he will have surgery in the coming days. Recovery is expected to take around 9 months.

Napoli did not stay quiet. The club wrote to him by his first name:

"Good luck, Khvicha, we hope to see you back on the pitch soon!"

It is only a few words, but it is enough. A ruptured ACL is bigger than club colours, and for a former Napoli player a message like this is the least the club owed him. It was not just a formality.

A word that hits hard here

In Naples, injuries are a sore subject at the moment. Alisson Santos has a moderate-grade strain of the left hamstring. He pulled up after about 20 minutes at Venezia, and it is the same injury that kept him out of the Arsenal game. That makes three players breaking down again within a month, after Anguissa and Neres. Buongiorno has had surgery on his meniscus and will be out for a long time.

In bars and on social media, supporters are talking about the fitness programme as much as they are talking about Allegri, and they are right to. Three players breaking down again in a month is not bad luck. People who follow the team every day are still waiting to be told what is going wrong.

What happened in Paris involves another club and another medical staff. But it is a reminder of what a season costs when the treatment room picks the team instead of the coach.

Roma, third on 17 points, come to the Maradona on Saturday 24 October at 18:00 CET (17:00 UK, 12:00 ET). The board has made the match the second review of Allegri's position. He will have to pick a side without Buongiorno and Alisson. Vergara is still a doubt, and Anguissa and McTominay, in Allegri's own words, "are not yet at 100%".