Defender Christoph Zimmermann hopes to be back in action at the start of December to help Norwich City’s battle with relegation. Having missed pre-season due to a knee surgery over the summer, the centre-back then suffered ligament damage in his right foot just 20 minutes into his Canaries Premier League debut and was forced off on 36 minutes of the 2-0 defeat at West Ham United on August 31.
A poorly-timed tackle from Hammers striker Sebastien Haller has cost him three months of the campaign and the German has had to watch his side’s struggles from the sidelines, with Norwich currently rock bottom of the top-flight standings.
The East Anglians have conceded 28 goals in 12 games while scoring just 11 and it is clear where the problem lies for manager Daniel Farke.
He has had to use defensive midfielders Ibrahim Amadou and Alex Tettey to fill in alongside Ben Godfrey due to a defensive injury crisis at Carrow Road and it has not been easy.
The players are currently enjoying a rest during the international break and there were rumours that Zimmerman might be fit in time to face Everton on November 23 when domestic matters resume.
However, despite being ahead of schedule in his recovery, the 26-year-old is more confident of getting back out on the pitch next month.
He has started full training with the rest of the squad once again and the visit of Arsenal on December 1 is very much in the front of his mind. “I know at the very early stages the manager said that I should be back in January, I’ve made some good progress and it’s been better than expected and therefore we said that December should definitely be possible,” said Zimmerman. “The way it is at the moment I’m just hoping to be back, the latest possible, in December.”
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