Edwin Van der Sar has broken two bones in his left hand, meaning he will be out for around eight weeks. Our keeper has already undergone surgery for the breaks which he sustained in saving Danijel Pranjic’s penalty in the Audi Cup last week.
Edwin will likely miss our games against Arsenal and City but should be back in time to face Liverpool in October.
This mean that Ben Foster, who has been unlucky with injuries himself, is being presented with a perfect opportunity to make himself our number one ahead of the World Cup this summer. Whilst this is a fairly nervy situation to find ourselves in at the start of the season, I think we should try and see it in a positive light. Van der Sar couldn’t go on for ever so what better way to test Foster’s credentials than for him to have a solid period where he is starting every game.
If Foster isn’t good enough, then better to find out now so we can start the search for Edwin’s replacement. If he is good enough, then brilliant, we’ll have two quality goalkeepers for next season.
