Operation necessary

Umjenovic out with serious knee injury

Stefan Umjenovic suffered a serious injury in his first competitive match for SW Bregenz.(Bild: GEPA pictures)

The worst fears of Stefan Umjenovic and his club SW Bregenz have turned out to be a bitter reality. The 28-year-old central defender injured his knee so badly in the 2:1 cup win against SC Schwaz that he will need an operation in the next few days and will miss the second division club for a very long time.

It was just over a quarter of an hour into the first round match in the ÖFB Cup between western league side Schwaz and second division side SW Bregenz when visiting central defender Stefan Umjenovic took a blow to his left knee. "I immediately heard a snap," the 28-year-old told the "Krone". An initial examination on Sunday raised hopes that the injury would not turn out to be a cruciate ligament rupture. A hope that was dashed on Tuesday, however.

Umjenovic, who arrived in the summer from relegated second division side FC Dornbirn and played his first competitive game for the Black & Whites in Schwaz, received the final diagnosis. "Tear of the anterior cruciate ligament, as well as a partial tear of the collateral ligament and the meniscus," Stefan reveals the devastating finding. "Unfortunately, I won't be able to avoid an operation."

Comeback not until 2025
This is due to take place in the coming days, but an exact date has not yet been set. It is therefore also clear that Umjenovic will miss several months for the Festspielstädter and will not return to the pitch until 2025,