Ben Godfrey suffered a serious ankle injury during Everton’s week 1 loss to Chelsea. Godfrey’s ankle twisted awkwardly as he made contact during a challenge. He had to be carried off and was in a lot of pain.
Based on how his ankle twisted, the two significant concerns are a high ankle sprain or a fracture. Unfortunately Everton boss Frank Lampard confirmed our fears: “It’s a small fracture of his fibula bone. We are thinking two or three months, that is a really quick assessment.”
Lampard’s timeline is realistic if this is a simple fracture that doesn’t require surgery. Many fractures come with a longer recovery time, though. There could also be ligament damage that wouldn’t show up on an x-ray. This could also lengthen recovery depending on severity.
The team will be left with a huge hole at center-back while Godfrey is sidelined, and realistically this absence could extend until November or December.
(Special thanks to Injury Mechanisms for their help identifying the injury)