Luke Brooke-Smith Faces Surgery After Serious Ankle Injury

Portsmouth’s bright young winger Luke Brooke-Smith is facing an agonising battle to play again this season after suffering a serious ankle injury in training.

The 18-year-old, who only arrived at Fratton Park in the summer from Wellington Phoenix, dislocated his ankle in what boss John Mousinho described as a “really unfortunate” incident at the training ground.

Speaking to BBC Radio Solent, Mousinho revealed the full extent of the damage.

“He’s suffered a severe ankle dislocation,” the Pompey head coach said. “Off the back of that, there is a fracture on his fibula and significant ligament damage.”

The medical team reacted quickly. Brooke-Smith received treatment on site before being taken to Queen Alexandra Hospital, where the injury was stabilised and he was later discharged.

“It was dealt with really well by everyone at the training ground and he was taken to QA before being discharged,” Mousinho added. “We’re going to leave it to settle for a couple of days, but he will go in for surgery after that.”

For a teenager just beginning to find his feet in English football, the timing is brutal.

Brooke-Smith has made four appearances for Pompey this season, starting once in the Championship and coming off the bench in his other outings. His energy, direct running and willingness to take on defenders had marked him out as one to watch in the months ahead.

Instead, his season has been thrown into doubt.

The winger addressed the setback on his Instagram page, laying bare the emotional toll of the injury.

“No words with how I’m feeling right now,” he wrote. “A freak incident in training causing me to dislocate my ankle, break fibula and potential ligament damage.

“As I don’t know the severity yet I’m trying my best to stay positive in a really hard time for me. I will work my hardest to get back out on the pitch to play for this amazing club.

“Thank you to all the staff and players for getting around me.”

The message captures both the shock of the moment and the defiance that will now define his season. Portsmouth lose a promising option out wide; Brooke-Smith faces months of rehab and the grind that comes with it.

For a player who crossed the world to chase this chance, the next phase of his journey will be fought not in front of a packed Fratton Park, but in treatment rooms and gym sessions — all with one target in mind: pulling that Portsmouth shirt back on.