Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers expects to be without winger Liel Abada for three to four months
Winger Liel Abada could miss Celtic’s entire Champions League campaign after suffering a thigh injury during training with Israel.
The 21-year-old has been a first-team regular this season under Brendan Rodgers and started in the 1-0 win over Rangers at Ibrox in their last Scottish Premiership match.
He was called up to the Israel squad for their Euro 2024 qualifiers against Romania and Belarus but suffered the injury during a training drill and missed both games.
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Manager Brendan Rodgers admitted it is a blow to the player who agreed a new four-year deal on transfer deadline day.
He said: “He’s gone to London today for a scan. We think it’s going to be around three to four months.
“He picked it up at the end of training in a shooting exercise, so it’s a real shame for us because he’s done well over pre-season and as you can see, he’s started a lot of the games since I’ve been here.
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“We’re really disappointed, but it’s a squad game for us so we’ll have other players to come in.
“It was his thigh when they were shooting at the end of training. It looks like he’s done his thigh muscle.
“He signed a new deal and seemed happy. Of course, I was looking forward to continuing his development because he still does have lots of areas that he can improve on.
“It’s a shame, it’s a learning curve for him. He’ll work hard, hopefully get back and we’ll use him for the second part of the season.”
Rodgers had named Abada in his 25-man squad for Celtic’s upcoming Champions League campaign, with their first game away to Feyenoord on September 19.
Abada has scored 29 goals in 106 appearances, the most recent in Celtic’s 3-1 Scottish Premiership win over Aberdeen at Pittodrie in August.
He has also won five trophies with the club, including last season’s treble, and was voted PFA Scotland Young Player of the Year in his first season.