Radamel Falcao García Injury Update: Colombian Striker Could Miss 2014 World Cup After Suffering Torn ACL In Monaco Win

With the 2014 World Cup in Brazil quickly approaching, each of the 32 international teams are preparing for what they hope will be a worthwhile trip to one of the biggest sporting events in the world. One club looking to make a strong showing at the summer tournament is the Colombia national soccer team. Currently ranked fourth in the FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings, head coach José Pékerman and Los Cafeteros possess an extremely talented roster but recent news indicating that the team could be without one of its biggest stars is not sitting well with club supporters.

According to multiple sources, Colombia striker and international star Radamel Falcao could miss the 2014 World Cup after suffering a torn ACL while playing for his regular club AS Monaco. The French Ligue 1 affiliate upended Monts d'Or Azergues Foot 3-0 in the recent French Coupe de France and even though Falcao proved his worth once again with his ninth goal of the season, the 27-year-old Santa Marta, Colombia native was removed from the game four minutes before the halftime break after damaging his left knee while challenging for a loose ball.

The club released a statement Thursday indicating that Falcao will undergo surgery within the next few days and the hope is that the high-profile athlete is able to recover in time for the 2014 tournament in Brazil. "Following Wednesday's injury, Radamel Falcao made a diagnostic examination," AS Monaco said. "It appears that the player is suffering from trauma in the left knee with lesion of ligament anterior cruciate. The player will have surgery in next few days. Doctors will do everything possible to speed up recovery."

After watching his star player go down with the devastating injury, AS Monaco boss Claudio Ranieri blamed the referees for not doing enough to protect the health and well-being of his top-level team. Ranieri noted that teams from a lower division will give every ounce of energy they have when going up against high-tier clubs and due to the physical nature of the game, the Monaco boss feels that Falcao should have been protected.

“When you play against a team from a lower division, they are going to play really hard,” Ranieri said. “That’s normal, and that is what I tell my players before the match. But if Falcao has something serious, it is the referee’s fault. Everyone wants to play like in England and let the game go. It’s not possible here. The referee must see when there is a foul and blow his whistle.”

While it remains to be seen how quickly the striker will recover from surgery, the fear now is that one of the most prolific scorers in the game will not be able to take the pitch once Colombia opens up its World Cup slate on June 14 against Greece. Playing out of a competitive Group C that includes Greece, Japan and the Ivory Coast, the Colombian nationals will surely need every available player on the roster and the potential loss of Falcao could surely be a crushing blow.