Knee specialist to top stars is being sued by ex-Prem player

A world-renowned knee specialist who's treated stars including Virgil van Dijk, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Danny Ings is being sued by a former Premier League player who claims his career was prematurely ended by 'aggressive' surgery.

Andy Williams, of the Fortius Clinic in London, treated the footballer after he suffered a lateral meniscus tear to his left knee during training. Yet legal documents claim that Williams, during a second operation following a suspected infection to the knee, caused a 'big' medial retinaculum rupture which forced the player into early retirement.

The player, who was with a Championship club at the time of the initial injury and asked to remain anonymous, says he's been left in pain, depressed, and that it's impacted his future career prospects.

Williams, trusted by many Premier League and Aviva Premiership clubs, acknowledges the player picked up a new problem following surgery but denies any wrongdoing. A trial is set to take place in the High Court later this year, the costs of which could run into several hundreds of thousands of pounds.

The dispute started in January 2017 when the player suffered his original tear in training. He claims he was advised surgery should '100 per cent repair' the problem and that he would return to playing within four months. Williams' defence denies that any guarantee of success was given.

Legal documents then describe a dispute over a holiday – the player claiming he was told it was safe for him and his partner to go away and the surgeon claiming he said the opposite.

Instead of a smooth recovery, the player says he felt sharp pains in the knee, which swelled up. Documents state that on his return from holiday, with his knee still hot and swollen, he was