Portugal’s Pedro Neto to miss Qatar World Cup with ankle injury

Wolverhampton Wanderers and Portugal winger Pedro Neto will undergo surgery on an ankle injury and miss the upcoming World Cup in Qatar, his Premier League team said on Friday.

The 22-year-old picked up the injury in the first half of Wolves’ 2-0 league defeat away by West Ham United last weekend. The World Cup is due to begin in Qatar on Nov. 20, with Portugal starting its campaign on November 24 against Ghana in Group H.

“Pedro sustained an ankle injury against West Ham on Saturday where he strained the lateral ligaments,” Wolves said in a statement. “Following further evaluation and a specialist opinion this week, it is planned for him to undergo surgery. This means that, unfortunately, he will not be fit for the upcoming World Cup.” Neto has played three times for Portugal, scoring once. Portugal reached the last 16 at the 2018 World Cup in Russia and its best performance was a third-place finish in 1966.