Santi Cazorla has revealed he is set to miss much of the start of next season as he continues to battle with the Achilles injuries that have plagued him in recent years.
The Spain international has not featured for Arsenal since he suffered a recurrence of the Achilles problem during October’s 6-0 Champions League win over Ludogorets.
It is the second successive season in which Cazorla’s season has been seriously curtailed by injury and the 32 year old has now undergone eight surgeries since damaging his ankle in October, the latest of which came earlier this week.
“You feel like throwing in the towel but my desire to play football is above everything,” Cazorla told Cadena Ser. “I haven't been given a timeframe [to return]. It's very difficult to put a date, but I don't think it will be within five months.
“I've undergone eight surgeries, the last one yesterday [Monday]. I hope that things go better.”
Cazorla added: “I've had complications since November. I got a bacterial infection in surgery, my bone got infected, the wound would not close and I had a graft done.
“I had a bad spell with a back problem [as a Villarreal player in 2010] but this is worse because it doesn't depend on me. Right now I can't think about the future, I just want to return to playing.”
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His injury troubles did not stop Arsenal from activating an option to extend Cazorla’s contract by a further year, taking him through to the end of next season.
Arsene Wenger admitted that the deep-lying playmaker’s absence had had major repercussions on the form of his Arsenal side, in particular Mesut Ozil, and Cazorla revealed that his manager had been a supportive figure during his lengthy absence.
“They [Arsenal] have been very good to me,” he said. “They gave me a contract extension before I had my surgery [in December]. The coach spoke to me and reassured me.”
