Melbourne Victory have been dealt a cruel blow with the club confirming on Thursday star import Keisuke Honda is likely to miss up to four weeks with a hamstring injury.
Honda, who hasn’t played since Victory’s 4-2 win over Brisbane Roar on December 14, had scans on Wednesday which revealed a strain in his right hamstring.
“It’s disappointing for Keisuke, his teammates, the club and our members and fans,” said coach Kevin Muscat.
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“He was close to playing last weekend - but we ultimately erred on the side of caution and allowed him an extra week to recover.
“He resumed full training with the group this week, with the intent to play against Western Sydney [on Saturday night].
“While there wasn’t a specific incident of note, Keisuke reported tightness in the area, so we again sent him for scans and received the results late in the day.”
Honda is now set to miss almost all of January, where Victory will play six matches, including the traditional Australia Day Big Blue against Sydney FC.
“While this isn’t the news we wanted coming into a busy period of games, we do have some players coming back into the frame for selection, which is a positive and will assist the group,” Muscat said.
Honda has been a revelation since joining Victory for the start of the season, scoring five goals and providing three assists from his eight appearances.
