Ryan Lowe has confirmed that Ben Woodburn's injury is not as bad as first feared, with the midfielder potentially returning for Preston after the international break later this month.

The 22-year-old was a free agent in the summer and he earnt a contract at Deepdale after impressing the boss in pre-season.

And, Woodburn has played his part this season so far, but he suffered an ankle injury against Coventry and missed the defeat to Birmingham as a result.

The attacking midfielder needed a scan with Lowe worried that the former Liverpool man would be set for a spell out.

But, whilst Woodburn isn't going to be available for the upcoming games, the boss did give an encouraging update when speaking to Lancashire Live.

"We've got some good news on him. Ben will probably miss the next three games but will be back for the Sunderland game, which is massive news for us because we thought it was going to be a long one.

"We thought he might've ruptured his ligaments, but he's sprained them. We were worried that he could be out for a long time, because he said he'd done it to his other ankle and was out for a while."

The verdict

As Lowe says, this is great news for Preston and it will be a major relief for Woodburn who has had injury issues over the years and he would've been fearing another lay-off.

Of course, it's not ideal that he's not going to be able to feature in the upcoming games but the club were clearly expected worse.

So, it's now about ensuring he continues his recovery properly and he will hope to make his mark on the team when he returns next month.

Thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.