Sunday, November 21, 2021 at 8:23 PM• Mart Oude Nijeweeme • Last update: 20:29

Mohammed Kudus may have already played his last game of this calendar year, Erik ten Hag announced after the 0-5 victory over RKC Waalwijk. The midfielder returned injured from the international break with Ghana and is sidelined for the time being. According to Ten Hag, it is ‘a serious injury’ and it remains to be seen whether Kudus will still be in action in 2021.

The exact severity of Kudus’ injury is yet to be determined. The midfielder is struggling with a rib injury and had to be replaced after eleven minutes of play in the World Cup qualifier against South Africa (1-0 win). Kudus will undergo a scan on Monday that should show how long he will be sidelined. “It is a serious injury”, Ten Hag told the press after the big victory over RKC. “That will take a while. I don’t know if he will be able to get into action this calendar year.”

It is not the first time that Kudus has suffered from injuries. The midfielder only played in five Eredivisie matches on behalf of the team from Amsterdam this season. “It is very annoying that he was injured again,” Ten Hag continues. “He had just been fit for a while and has played a number of games. He played a very good part against Borussia Dortmund. It is extremely disappointing, especially for himself. He is deeply disappointed that it is happening to him again. We will have to pull him out of it. and he will have to lift himself up again.”

The injury is bad news for the midfielder and also for Ajax. The Ghanaian has already missed much of the preparation for the current season, plus the first six official games of this football season, due to an ankle injury. He was sidelined last season due to a meniscus injury. Due to all the injuries, the 21-year-old midfielder has only played 28 official matches for Ajax since he came over from FC Nordsjaelland in the summer of 2020. Two weeks ago he had a starting spot against Go Ahead Eagles (0-0).