RIO DE JANEIRO, Oct. 24 (Xinhua) -- Flamengo right-back Guillermo Varela is set to miss Saturday's Copa Libertadores final against Athletico Paranaense because of a leg muscle injury.
Scans confirmed a grade two tear of the 29-year-old's left hamstring, the Rio de Janeiro club said on Monday.
The injury also casts doubt over Varela's availability for Uruguay at the FIFA World Cup, to be played in Qatar from November 20 to December 18.
The defender was last week included in manager Diego Alonso's preliminary 55-man squad for the tournament, which will be trimmed to 26 in mid-November.
Flamengo received better news about the recovery of veteran Chilean midfielder Arturo Vidal, who was released from hospital on Monday following surgery to drain fluid from his right ankle.
Meanwhile, holding midfielder Thiago Maia resumed training with Flamengo's first-team squad after missing the 2-1 Brazilian Serie win at American Mineiro on Saturday due to a knee problem.
The all-Brazilian Copa Libertadores final will be played at the 59,000-capacity Monumental stadium in Ecuador's Pacific port city of Guayaquil. Flamengo are aiming for their third Libertadores trophy while Paranaense are bidding to win South America's premier club competition for the first time. ■
