With preparations ongoing ahead of Sheffield Wednesday welcoming local rivals Sheffield United to Hillsborough on Monday evening, manager Steve Bruce has admitted that on loan Newcastle United fullback Achraf Lazaar could now be missing for up to the next six weeks after sustaining and injury.
The almost forgotten Newcastle defender was quick to impress Wednesday fans as he built his fitness and sharpness in our Under 23 setup, and he continued to make a quick impression on fans as he made his debut last Saturday in the victory over Swansea City. Sadly for us, he limped off in our 2-0 win over Brentford in midweek having sustained a hamstring problem.
Speaking to the Yorkshire Evening Post this week, Bruce confirmed that the 27-year-old left back could now be out for around the six week mark, but he was certainly hopeful that he could make a return to action ahead of that timeframe.
“We are looking at weeks, at least six I would have thought. We won’t know the severity of it until this afternoon when he has a scan. We have let him have 48 hours until we can re-assess it. Once he has had the scan we will know a little bit more. I have to say, the early stages don’t look good. Fingers crossed it’s not as bad as we fear. The intensity of the Championship is huge. I should have been a bit better with the boy. With Fox injured, and the lad was beaming – he had a great debut – but I am kicking myself. I have been in the game a long, long time, and it’s common sense. He hadn’t played in a long time, then to play him twice, the intensity of the games is huge. Lazaar did 11.5km on Saturday, and you are asking him to go back into the race do it again. Maybe he wasn’t ready.”
Hopefully the scan gives some positive news.
