Kaka may need knee surgery

Real Madrid midfielder Kaka has suspected meniscus damage in his left knee and may need surgery, the La Liga club said on Thursday.

The Brazilian playmaker, who was plagued with injuries over the past year but recovered to feature at the World Cup in South Africa, had left Real's pre-season training camp in California and flown to Belgium for checks by a specialist, the club said (www.realmadrid.com).

"He's a very popular player among his team mates and also a very good player but we want him at 100 percent so that he is happy," coach Jose Mourinho said at a news conference in San Francisco after Real beat Club America 3-2 in a friendly.

"If we have to lose him for a while it won't be a drama," the Portuguese added. "We have other players and that's that."

Kaka, 28, joined Real from AC Milan at the end of the 2008-09 season for a fee of around 65 million euros ($85.3 million). He made 25 league appearances last term, scoring eight goals.

Real play a friendly against Major League Soccer (MLS) club LA Galaxy on Saturday in Los Angeles.