Luuk de Jong Suffers Setback: Porto Striker Injured Again

Luuk de Jong's worrying injury wills Porto backdown

Porto striker Luuk de Jong suffers anterior cruciate ligament injury, dealing a blow to the team's attacking options.

“FC Porto reports that the player is now under the care of the Health Department and wishes him a swift and full recovery...”

Porto striker Luuk de Jong has suffered a major blow, sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury during the match against Estoril. This traumatic injury will keep him out of action, and he's already taken to social media to respond to the news.

The injury is a significant setback for Porto, who will be without De Jong for a significant period. The team will have to rely on other options, with Deniz Gul, Yann Karamoh, and Angel Alarcon available to Francesco Farioli. Victor Froholdt and Diogo Costa are out, leaving Farioli to make adjustments to his lineup for Thursday's match against Vitoria SC.

“Yesterday, I received the terrible news that I suffered an anterior cruciate ligament injury. I am devastated. After months of hard work and training to get back to helping the team and this wonderful club, FC Porto, it hurts deeply to be sidelined from the pitch once again.

“I will face this challenge with all my strength, determined to return even stronger, both physically and mentally,” wrote De Jong on Instagram. 

Further tests on Thursday have confirmed that the player has suffered an injury to his left knee, the same knee that had already kept him sidelined for two and a half months. This comes after an initial assessment at Olival on Monday detected a contusion in the knee.

“Following the traumatic incident reported in the medical bulletin after the match against Estoril Praia (1-0), Luuk de Jong suffered a partial tear of the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee.

“FC Porto reports that the player is now under the care of the Health Department and wishes him a swift and full recovery, reaffirming the Club’s full support for Luuk de Jong throughout every stage of this process,” read the club’s statement, without specifying a recovery timeline.

Luuk de Jong, the 35-year-old Dutch striker, was initially injured in a closed-door friendly against Lusitania de Lourosa on September 8th. This unfortunate incident came after he had played three official matches and scored once for Porto, following his surprise introduction in the pre-season match against Atletico Madrid.

Luuk de Jong's return to competition was looking promising, with him gradually increasing his playing time - 15 minutes against Sintrense, 18 minutes versus Nice, and 23 minutes against Estoril. However, the injury bug struck again, and he'll now be out for an indefinite period, dealing a blow to Porto's attacking options.

ℹ Internacional neerlandês sofreu uma lesão parcial no ligamento cruzado anterior ▶ https://t.co/zfvLn5gg5Y pic.twitter.com/bDRPoOEkpv

— FC Porto (@FCPorto) December 4, 2025

On the bright side, Turkish forward Deniz Gul has recovered and is available for selection, joining Yann Karamoh and Angel Alarcon as options for Francesco Farioli. Diogo Costa and Victor Froholdt, on the other hand, are being rested as part of workload management, leaving Farioli to make decisions on his lineup for the match against Vitoria SC.