Just one day after arriving on Australian soil, Parramatta recruit Lee Mossop has revealed he will likely miss the first nine games of the 2014 season with a shoulder injury.
The former Wigan forward admitted he had been carrying the shoulder problem for the past two years and while he could've played on, was advised by the Eels coaching staff to undergo surgery immediately.
"I'm hoping for about round ten, about that time," Mossop told parraeels.com.au.
"When I realised I was signing for Parramatta, I sat down with the coach after the World Cup and in 2011 I had a shoulder injury which I played with for two years and I could've quite easily played again for this season without having a surgery."
"But I spoke with Brad [Arthur] and spoke with Pete Nolan and Daniel Anderson and we all agreed that from my point of view, I wanted to come over and although I was playing, I wasn't able to play at my full potential which I thought was important.
"The big thing for me is I'm hoping to be at Parramatta for the long term and I think now before I start it was better off to get that fixed up so I could go into the season all guns blazing and hopefully give it my best shot."
Having won the Super League title and Challenge Cup with Wigan last year, Mossop played in England's World Cup opener against Australia but wasn't selected for the rest of the tournament.
Arthur granted Mossop an extended layoff following the tournament, and the 25-year-old arrived in Sydney on Tuesday to begin his three-year stay with the Eels.
"As a player you want to test yourself more and more and I'd been at Wigan since I was 16," he said.
"So almost eight years now and I felt in hindsight, we just won the Challenge Cup and the Grand Final up there, so it was the perfect time to leave.
"It was just that new challenge. And when the approach come from Parramatta and Pete Nolan they couldn't speak highly enough of the club. The club's building and the team's going to better places and it was something I was really excited to be a part of. And I thought, why not? It's perfect timing."
