Nikolov & Salparov Injured!

Yikes! 2 Bulgarian stars are injured! Not good.

Vladimir Nikolov and Teodor Salparov are expected to miss the 2011 World League due to serious injuries. Knowing the international season kicks off in less than 2 months, the absence of these 2 players is a huge loss for the Bulgarian squad – Matey Kaziyski needs to work harder.

Nikolov, opposite hitter, is currently playing in the Playoffs of the Italian League for Team Cuneo with an injured shoulder. What a trooper! As soon as the season ends, Vlado will undergo arthroscopy to fix a damaged ligament. Ouch! He’s going to miss the World League but will be back in better shape just in time for the 2011 European Championships.

“Last year I had a problem with the shoulder caused by many years spent playing with inflammation. A ligament is thicker and has calcium deposits and consequently must be ‘cleaned’. I want to specify that this intervention is not surgery but an arthroscopy. This method finds two or three points in the shoulder. It is also extremely important that the recovery is much shorter.” – says Nikolov.

While Nikolov can still play, his teammate Salparov is out of the Bulgarian League after tearing a ligament in his knee. Yikes! Take note, the injury was caused by a sweat spot on the floor. Salparov is already pessimistic about his future by predicting that he’s going to miss the Euro Champs.

Come on now BB! You can’t think like that. Get the surgery done and hopefully you will recover in time. You might not know this, but you’re one of the best liberos in Europe. You’re always fun to watch so we hope to see you later this year.

Hang in there BBs!

(images: FIVB)