After a long hiatus due to an unexpectedly insane work load at the hospital we are back. Our long time readers know the drill. For those of you who have never seen a Health Report before—this is the weekly space where we at SempreInter.com discuss the health status of the first team squad: from discussion on a new injury, weekly updates on a player’s road to recovery, the occasional in depth medical breakdown of an injury, and everything in between. Without further ado, let’s jump right into it.

Upcoming Matches:

Inter Milan vs AC Milan, Serie A, Sunday February 9th, Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, kick-off 20:45 CET

Inter Milan vs SSC Napoli, Coppa Italia, Wednesday February 12th, Stadio Giuseppe Meazza, kick-off 20:45 CET

First Team Fitness:

Roberto Gagliardini: The Italian midfielder has been absent since the beginning of December when he suffered a foot injury. Unfortunately, per reports over the past several weeks, he’s been dealing with some bone edema in his foot (some fluid collection in the bone).

There are many reasons why something like this can occur, but without the results from the imaging studies performed, it’s hard to specify why this developed in his foot. Typically bone edema takes around a minimum of 6 weeks to heal. As the club haven’t provided the specifics of when this edema may have formed, there’s no saying when he may return to action.

Stefano Sensi: The club’s MVP early in the season but has struggled for fitness since he suffered a right adductor muscle injury against Juventus and has yet to play a full 90 minutes since. The Italian has suffered with a calf strain with some reports of minor edema (again, swelling) in the area and hasn’t been available for selection.

The good news is that he currently in training and working his way back into the starting XI. There is a chance he’ll play against Napoli, but given the club’s loftier expectations this season, I’d be hard pressed to believe they’d risk rushing him back.

Borja Valero: The Spanish midfielder is also dealing with muscular problems and looks set to be sidelined for the upcoming Derby Della Madonnina.

Samir Handanovic: The big injury that was found during training several days ago. The club reports that the club captain looks set to be sidelined due to a hairline fracture (also known as a stress fracture) in his left hand. Stress fractures are incredibly common in athletes but are still serious nonetheless and require time to heal unless the club and player want to risk a more severe injury.

The most notable example from this season remains Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford who was rushed back from a stress fracture by the club and suffered a serious setback that looks to sideline him for several months. Various reports are flying around saying Handanovic could still be available for the derby match-up vs AC Milan while others say he’ll be out for 3 to 4 weeks.

But his return depends heavily on the size and location of the fracture. No one but the club has that information and any guesses as to his return date is simply reckless speculation. The club will continue to reassess him on a daily basis.