Barcelona forward Ferran Torres has undergone surgery on appendicitis, the club has confirmed.
Torres bagged a hat-trick of assists during Sunday’s Clasico win over Real Madrid, which put Barcelona on the brink of sealing this season’s La Liga title, but has since been struck down with the illness and had a successful operation on Wednesday.
The 25-year-old will now recover and would be expected to miss the remainder of the season.
There are just ten days until La Liga’s final round of fixtures, but Barcelona can win the title on Thursday evening with victory in the city derby against Espanyol.
The La Liga title was very nearly theirs on Wednesday, until Real Madrid pulled a 2-1 victory out of the fire against Mallorca with a stoppage-time winner from unlikely goalscorer Jacobo Ramon.
Torres has only started 12 La Liga games this season, and three in the Champions League, but his role in the squad has been an important one. The former Manchester City player has typically been the first alternative in all three positions across the front line, the initial point of cover for Robert Lewandowski, Lamine Yamal and Raphinha, which has afforded him 45 appearances overall.
Within that, Torres has scored a highly respectable 19 goals across all competitions. Perhaps his most notable performance after last weekend’s Clasico was scoring a brace as a 67th minute substitute in the 4-2 comeback win over Atletico Madrid in March.
Recovery from an appendix removal can be around a couple of weeks, which should mean Torres is well rested by the time pre-season begins for Barcelona in July.
