The Galaxy confirmed Friday that midfielder Riqui Puig will have to undergo surgery on his left knee, which he originally injured in 2024.
Puig, who missed all of the 2025 season due to an ACL injury, was targeting a return to action this season.
“Riqui Puig suffered a setback in his ACL recovery while in Barcelona, Spain,” the club said in a statement. “After consulting with club medical staff and outside specialists, it was determined that he would undergo a procedure tomorrow on his left knee.
“Details on his recovery timeline will be determined post procedure.”
In an Instagram post, he said: “2025 tried to tear me in pieces. 2026 I’m not coming back. I never left.”
The Athletic’s Tom Bogert was the first to report the news of the upcoming surgery, adding that Puig’s “2026 is in question.”
Puig suffered the injury in the 2024 Western Conference final against the Seattle Sounders. The club didn’t put him on the season-ending list and there was some though that he could have made a late-season comeback in 2025.
Before the club departed after this season, Puig had started ramping up his comeback. Galaxy coach Greg Vanney said before the team’s end-of-the-season friendly with America that he expected Puig to be at full capacity by the time training began this year.
Puig, one of the Galaxy’s three Designated Players, had his contract extended in May 2024 through the 2027 season.