Ronaldo to miss start of new season after ankle op

We may not know who Cristiano Ronaldo will be registered to play for at the start of the new football season, but one thing at least is for certain: whoever it is, he won't be fit to play for them.

The Portuguese star, currently the subject of a tug-of-love between Manchester United and Real Madrid , underwent a successful operation on his injured ankle in Holland today.

However, it will be at least a month before Professor Niek van Dijk, the Dutch ankle specialist who operated on the 23-year-old, can assess when he will be ready to return to action.

Van Dijk is one of the world's foremost experts in ankle injuries, and is a former head of Dutch Squash Federation's medical committee. He operated on the Portuguese winger at the Academic Medical Centre in Amsterdam.

Manchester United said in a statement this afternoon: "Cristiano Ronaldo underwent surgery today to his right ankle and the initial indications are that the procedure was successful.

"Cristiano will begin his convalescence under the direction of club medical staff and an estimation of his return to full fitness will be possible following review by the specialist in one month."