Cartilage surgery necessary

How handball star Santos wants to come back stronger

Füchse top player Raul Santos needs surgery. The handball season is over for him(Bild: GEPA)

The "Foxes" first have to digest this bad news. Top player Raul Santos has to undergo cartilage surgery and will be out of action for the entire handball season. The "Krone" spoke to the 32-year-old about his upcoming period of suffering and his big comeback plan.

"I only played with pain. I knew we had to do something about it," sighs Foxes star Raul Santos. An MRI examination finally brought clarity. There is a cartilage drama. The cartilage has to be "repaired", an operation is unavoidable. "It's obviously a consequence of my serious injury in 2016," says Santos. Back then, shortly before his sensational transfer to world club THW Kiel, the Styrian tore his inner ligament in the World Cup qualifier against Romania. "The cartilage is now being reconstructed and then inserted," explains the winger, who has to lie on the operating table in Kalwang at the end of the month. "I also got a lot of opinions from Germany. It's the right decision. I also know that my knee is no longer a new model."

The BT Füchse currently have a lot to cheer about in the HLA. In the future, however, they will have to do without top player Raul Santos.(Bild: GEPA)

After the operation and rehabilitation, Santos should also find his way back to his old strength. "After that, everything should really work again without pain. Ultimately, the operation is a routine procedure," says the Foxes player, who of course also knows that tough times await him. "Of course there will also be a period of depression straight after the operation. When you're confined to bed and later can only watch games from the stands on crutches. But I'm not a young player anymore, I've already been through injuries. I know how to deal with it mentally."

End of career not an issue
Santos is certainly not thinking about retiring. "Handball is part of my life. This sport will continue to define my life after the injury. And I'll still be close to the team during the injury phase. If players, especially young players, need my advice, I will always have an open ear for them." And as a fan, he will be there live anyway. In sporting terms, the "Foxes" are doing almost fabulously in the HLA at the moment (despite injury worries): with 12 points after seven rounds, the Styrians are clearly on course for the quarter-finals as league leaders.