Crash horror for Buonanotte

Buonanotte: Out of immediate danger

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Argentine starlet Diego Buonanotte is facing up to seven months on the sidelines after being involved in a car crash.

The River Plate playmaker was airlifted to hospital in Buenos Aires on Saturday after seeing three of his friends perish in the incident.

The 21-year-old is reported to be out of any immediate danger but an injury to his lung is still causing concern.

"Diego is stable but we are continuing to wait," said club doctor Horacio Cavallieri.

"We know that the next 72 hours are those where the risk is greatest.

Fractures

"The fractures can wait, the priority is the lung. At the moment he is recovering as has been foreseen. The recovery period is an estimated seven months."

Cavallieri added: "He is sedated but you can talk to him because he is conscious.

"We have not mentioned at all what happened in the accident. He hasn't asked us either. We don't want him to watch television. We will supply a group of psychologists and psychiatrists to help him."

Buonanotte is regarded as one of Argentina's most promising talents, with it seen as only a matter of time before he seals a big-money to Europe.

Sunderland and Atletico Madrid were reported to be monitoring his progress ahead of the January transfer window, but any plans to bring him on board will now have to be shelved for the foreseeable future.