Speaking ahead of the Cottagers’ clash with Sunderland, the tactician revealed that the forward had the procedure on Saturday and is expected to miss the next three months.
“Rodrigo had surgery last Saturday,” Silva told the media.
“Really bad news for us. A long period for him to be out and for him to have a setback in his first game back is painful for him.
“He’s a player that has big aims for the season. It’s sad for him, his teammates and all staff at the football club. In terms of time scale, the middle of February is probably the time for him. If he can come back earlier then that’s better for us, but it’s a long period without him.
“We have Raúl, with help from Jonah (Kusi-Asare), and Aaron (Loupalo-Bi) from the Under-21s. We have different solutions. We have wingers who can adapt, not replicating what we usually do with Raúl and Rodrigo.”