Nabbout’s fitness update after dislocating shoulder

Socceroos striker Andrew Nabbout hasn’t given up hope of playing against Peru at the FIFA World Cup™ despite confirmation he dislocated his shoulder against Denmark.

Nabbout was forced from the field late in the 1-1 draw in Samara and an innocuous fall on his right shoulder.

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It was a similar injury to what the 25-year-old suffered with J-League club Urawa Reds in May.

The sight of Nabbout leaving the pitch in agony had many believing his tournament was over, including coach Bert van Marwijk who said just that in the post-match press conference.

But the former Newcastle Jets attacker is hopeful he’ll recover quickly and he’ll get a chance to play again in Russia.

"They say the second time is a little bit quicker," Nabbout told reporters in Russia.

"I will be right...it's fine now, there is no pain.

"I'll start rehabbing it and see how we go from there.

"When I landed on it, it was in an awkward position and popped out - nothing I haven't felt before."

Andrew Nabbout forced off the field in pain against Denmark.
Andrew Nabbout forced off the field in pain against Denmark.

Nabbout was at Socceroos training on Friday, watching from the stands with his right arm in a sling.

With just four days before Australia’s pivotal clash with Peru, Nabbout is at long-odds to recover in time to play in the must-win clash.

The first time he dislocated his shoulder, the injury kept Nabbout sidelined for a couple of weeks.

"Hopefully this time being the second time, it recovers a little bit quicker and we can go again," he said.

"Obviously it was disappointing. There were a lot of emotions running through me after the game.

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"Let's just see how it settles down in the next few days and we'll go from there.

"I have always got positive thoughts on my mind. Hopefully if I rehab it quick enough, anything can happen, I rehabbed pretty quick from the last one."

If Nabbout is unavailable for Peru, van Marwijk will need to decide which of his other three strikers will start.

Tomi Juric replaced Nabbout for the last 15 minutes against the Danes, with Jamie Maclaren and veteran Tim Cahill the other options to lead the line.

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