LONDON (AP) — Tottenham midfielder Dejan Kulusevski revealed on Thursday he had a “small intervention” on his injured right knee that has kept him sidelined all season and will cause him to miss the World Cup playoffs with Sweden.

Kulusevski has been in Sweden’s camp this week for the buildup to the semifinal playoff against Ukraine in Valencia, Spain, on Thursday, but wasn’t picked in the squad and will not play.

Footage showed Kulusevski apparently walking with a limp and he took to Instagram to explain why.

“Just to clarify things. I’m limping because I had a small intervention in the knee 2 weeks ago,” he wrote on Instagram. “Went in and took out what was not suppose(d) to be there. Knee is great now.”

Kulusevski hasn’t played for club or country since last May when he hurt his knee in a Premier League game.

He has been a big miss for Tottenham, which is fighting to avoid relegation.

Tottenham interim manager Igor Tudor said last week there was no timeline on Kukusevski’s potential return.

___

AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer