After hurting his right knee in Tuesday’s 1-0 win at Aston Villa, the Liverpool right back headed for a scan on Wednesday, fearing his World Cup dream could be in jeopardy.
Despite assurances he had not suffered any cruciate damage, he was still warned to expect a long haul back to full fitness after tests showed he had torn a medial ligament.
He will see a specialist on Thursday for a more precise appraisal of his recovery time.
His absence places a further strain on defensive resources at Anfield, with 19-year-old Martin Kelly and out-of-favour Philipp Degen Liverpool’s only other right backs and Jamie Carragher making little secret of his reluctance to move over from centre half.
Though Johnson, an £18million signing from Portsmouth in the summer, remains on course for the World Cup finals, England manager Fabio Capello has stressed the importance of fitness levels and will have to be convinced of his return to peak condition before naming him in the squad for South Africa.
Johnson’s mishap, as he stretched to make a tackle, took some of the shine off a crucial Liverpool win that revived their hopes of a top four finish in the Barclays Premier League — they are four points behind fourth-placed Tottenham — just as they seemed in danger of being cut adrift.
Johnson’s foraging runs down the right have provided a rare bright spot in a season of underachievement for Rafa Benitez’s side, though Carragher was at least able to identify another source of encouragement in the return to form and fitness of striker
Fernando Torres.
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