Attaching the patellar ligament to the tibia To attach the patellar ligament to the tibia, follow the steps in the video below. Be sure that the patella is oriented such that when the patellar ligament is attached and the patella "flipped up," the patellar cartilage is oriented toward the joint and other articular cartilages (see time point 0:16 in the video). Video showing how to attach the patellar ligament to the tibia.