Fulham hit by Zamora dislocation
Fulham's Bobby Zamora may have suffered a serious injury against Stoke
Wednesday, 06, Jan 2010 12:20
By Alistair Potter.
Bobby Zamora could be out of action for several weeks after Fulham manager Roy Hodgson revealed the striker has suffered a dislocated shoulder or collarbone.
The England hopeful was taken off early in the second half of the Cottagers' 3-2 defeat to Stoke City at the Britannia Stadium.
And Hodgson, who also lost experienced defender Brede Hangeland in the same game, admitted the Premier League clash had been "a very expensive game".
On Zamora's injury, the Fulham boss said: "It's bad and it looks like a dislocation.
"I don't know at this point whether it's his collarbone or shoulder but either way it's a bad injury.
"Andy Johnson dislocated his collarbone and he made a swift recovery and was back on the field in three weeks.
"Having said that, for the injury to heal fully it takes longer because as a forward you're always being buffeted around and you can't protect it as well as you would like.
"It's certainly not a short-term injury and I can only hope that the prognosis is not too bad."
If Zamora is ruled out for a significant time it could be detrimental to his chances of being selected for England's 2010 World Cup finals squad for South Africa in the summer.
Fabio Capello has only one more friendly left - against Egypt at Wembley on March 3rd - before he announces his provisional 23-man squad for the World Cup.
It is not yet known if Zamora will return to fitness in time to be considered for selection against the north African side.