Another injury blow for Brighton as £25m ace confirms surgery after nine-games absence

Brighton are set to be without summer signing Ferdi Kadioglu for an extended period due to his toe injury.

The Turkey international, who joined Brighton from Fenerbahce for around £25m last summer, has not featured since the 2-1 Premier League loss at Liverpool last November.

Kadioglu scored in that match at Anfield and looked set to be a major player for the Seagulls until the injury scuppered his progress.

The injury was initially described as minor but became more problematic and Kadioglu revealed this week that he had to undergo surgery.

“Over the past few months, I’ve been working hard to recover from an injury I initially believed would heal quickly,” the 25-year-old posted on Instagram.

“However, despite my efforts and the support of our medical team, the recovery process has taken longer than expected. After thorough evaluations, we have decided that undergoing an operation on January 2 is the best step forward to ensure a complete recovery.

“While it’s never easy to face such setbacks, I’m fully committed to coming back stronger than ever and help my team by giving everything on the pitch.

Thank you for your ongoing support during this period."