Maidstone winger Joan Luque’s hopes of a January return are in the balance.

Luque was targeting a new year comeback from a knee operation but that will be on hold if a hernia injury he’d been carrying last season requires surgery.

The Spaniard led Maidstone to the National South title, scoring 20 goals from the left wing.

He missed the run-in after suffering a serious knee injury in the win at Dartford in April and had an operation over the summer.

Luque is back in the UK after spending time recuperating in Spain and should soon get a clearer idea of when he’s likely to play again.

Speaking on Saturday, he said: “Probably by the end of next week, we’re going to know if the hernia needs surgery or not.

“If it does, it puts me back a couple of months so instead of January we’re looking at March.

“The knee operation went well, the first month was tough, but it’s good to see the progress.

“I’m walking off crutches and in a month I should be running if everything was going the normal way but we need to see about the hernia.

“I had it in February and was playing with painkillers every game but that’s something that needed to be fixed as well.

“Obviously, you prioritise the knee operation, which is bigger and longer.”

One thing’s for sure - Luque will do everything he can to pull on a Maidstone shirt this season.

The easy option would be to write off the campaign and come back for pre-season.

But while his doctor is urging caution, he’ll take a risk if the Stones have something to play for.

“If it’s a case of playing for the last month, I will risk it, especially if the team is playing for something important,” said Luque.

“If they’re mid-table, not going for the play-offs and not in danger of going down, then it might not be worth the risk.

“If we’re playing for something, it depends on what happens, but I want to play, I don’t want to call it off.”

Time back in Spain after the operation did Luque the world of good mentally.

That’s important when recovering from a bad injury but he’s happy to back in Maidstone.

He said: “It was painful to be here, if that makes sense.

“You get to see the boys and see them play but it was painful to be outside and not be able to run and, at the beginning, not even be able to walk.

“I was just sitting down on the side watching them train. That was really frustrating.

“It’s a killer for the mind so I needed some time off in terms of not watching people you’re normally with training and playing and having fun while you can’t do anything.

“It definitely helped me, going back to Spain.

“My family and friends, they gave me some good vibes, some good energy, but now I can do more it’s a bit different.

“I can go to training and maybe do kick-ups when I’m bored or work with Beth (Cooper, sports therapist).

“It’s a different session to what it would have been in the first or second month after the operation.

“I had my family and friends for support in Spain and now I’ve got my team-mates and the supporters.

“The fans come and ask me when are you back, it’s something you get used to.

“The crowd always show their support and I appreciate it.

“When everyone’s asking you, that means you’ve obviously done something well before, because they want you back.”

Maidstone sit 15th in the National League without Luque and host leaders Chesterfield on Saturday.

Their injured talisman says they need to get used to the higher level.

"It's a much tougher league than last year," he said.

"For example, you're going to go to places like Wrexham where it's really, really hard.

"It's not the best start but it's not the worst.

"We're sitting in mid-table - I think everyone would take that - but considering the games we've had, I think we could have a couple more points on the board.

"The boys need to get used to the level as soon as possible, and perform."