Colombia's World Cup prospects hang in the balance after star striker Radamel Falcao suffered cruciate ligament damage whilst playing for AS Monaco in a French Cup tie in midweek. The 27-year-old was a £50 million summer signing from Atletico Madrid for Claudio Ranieri and is now set to miss at least the rest of the season. Falcao has already gone under the knife, and has been backed by the surgeon who operated on him to come back in time to make Brazil. Usually speaking, knee ligament injuries take six to nine months to recover from. This means Colombia national coach Jose Pekerman needs to have a contingency plan no matter how optimistic doctors are. Falcao netted nine times in qualifying for his country. That amounted to a third of the total scored by Colombia as they finished as runners up to Argentina in the South America section. Pekerman's preferred strike pairing saw Falcao partnered by six-goal Teofilo Gutierrez. Other current options on the roster see prolific Porto frontman Jackson Martinez acting as the main backup. He is joined by yet another 27-year-old in Sevilla's Carlos Bacca, who has averaged a goal every two games in the first half of the season for the La Liga outfit. Udinese centre forward Luis Muriel, 22, meanwhile is on the international fringe, but has still managed six in 17 club appearances during an injury-hit campaign in Italy. Chances are then that Pekerman may have to bring a player in from the cold if Falcao cannot recover in time. Here are four Colombian strikers that could fill this potential void.
Jamie Clark is a qualified Web Journalist after undergoing professional training at the University of Sheffield. A prolific and accredited sports writer, he also enjoys classic comedy, historic fiction, 80s music and heritage.
