Singapore legend Fandi Ahmad has had knee replacement surgery just nine days after representing his country in the Battle of the Masters against Liverpool and Arsenal.
The 55-year-old underwent the procedure at Singapore General Hospital on Monday, posting a picture on his official Instagram account to thank the staff who helped him.
Fandi, the father of national team members Irfan Fandi and Ikhsan Fandi, has been troubled by knee pain for several years.
Even so, he has actively participated in Masters' tournaments, in addition to his coaching role within Singapore football at junior and senior level.
He was on the training pitch earlier this month when Singapore prepared for their penultimate 2019 AFC Asian Cup qualifier against Bahrain at the National Stadium.
While he is expected to resume his coaching roles within a few weeks, it is not clear if Fandi's knee surgery will rule him out of future Masters' tournaments.
As a player, Fandi earned 101 caps for Singapore between 1979 and 1997, scoring 55 goals. Apart from an extensive career for Singapore and Malaysia clubs, he had a ground-breaking spell with Eredivisie side Groningen between 1983 and 1985.
Memorably, Fandi scored a goal for Groningen against Inter Milan in the second round of the UEFA Cup in the 1983-84 season as the Dutch outfit pulled off a surprise 2-0 victory.