Middlesbrough boss Chris Wilder has provided an injury update on duo Marc Bola and Paddy McNair.
With the new season less than two weeks away now, any injuries at this stage are a concern.
McNair missed Boro's last pre-season outing, which concerned fans. Wilder revealed it was due to an injury
“He just turned his ankle over in training and it just shows how quickly you can lose a player." Wilder said, via TeessideLive.
"You’ve lost a player just like that from an innocuous coming together in training. These things happen from time to time and you can’t do much about it.
"It’s not an overuse and underuse injury, it’s a compact one, turning his ankle in training, going for a tackle with one of the boys and falling awkwardly. These things can happen.
We’re hopeful it won’t be too long, obviously he misses the first game of the season anyway [suspended], so we’ll see how he goes with that one and hopefully get him back as soon as possible because he is a big player for us."
Wilder, too, sounded optimistic regarding Marc Bola's chances of being fit for the season opener.
"He’s okay." Wilder added.
"He had a tight groin so no good taking him just to give him treatment so he’ll be part of the group on Friday.
"There are a couple of games. There’s a game on Friday and one on Saturday at Darlington so the boys that don’t get minutes on Friday will be involved on Saturday at Darlington."
Middlesbrough kick off their 2022/23 Championship campaign with a tricky home tie against West Bromwich Albion.
The Verdict
This is a positive update from Chris Wilder.
It sounds as though Marc Bola has a knock, whereas McNair will hope to be back ready for selection when he is eligible after his suspension.
Middlesbrough will hope that the arrival of Darragh Lenihan can cover the absence of McNair for what is a tricky season opener.
With a back three likely to consist of Dael Fry, Darragh Lenihan and Anfernee Dijksteel, Boro will be still fielding a strong back-line for the fixture, though.
The season opener, for both sides, should provide a very solid early season test ahead of the rest of the Championship campaign.