Leeds United’s Adam Forshaw is not expected to play again this season but he has been making good progress as he looks to recover from a hip injury.
The midfielder, who joined the Whites in January 2018 from Middlesbrough for £4.5m, has struggled with fitness problems since he signed. He missed around a third of the previous campaign and this one has been extremely frustrating for the 28-year-old, with his last appearance for the Yorkshire outfit coming back in September in the 1-0 defeat at Charlton. All in all, he has managed just seven outings for Leeds this season, meaning his contribution to their fine season has been minimal.
Forshaw required surgery to solve his hip complaint and The Athletic reporter Phil Hay has revealed on his podcast that the player will have benefited from this enforced absence, as well as confirming that his recovery is going well.
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Premier League
Championship
“I think it is likely that his recovery and his need for a proper full pre-season would rule him out of any games that take place in June or July.
“But actually, suddenly he’s not a million miles away in the way that he was when he first had his surgery. I don’t think there is any expectation at all that he would be involved in what’s left of the season but this is the thing, across the country there are players that will benefit from this.”
Of course, with no return date yet officially confirmed for the football, the ex-Brentford man would come into contention if this continues into August or beyond.
The nature of Forshaw’s injury, which forced him to visit the renowned Steadman Clinic in Colorado, was concerning for Leeds at the time but he will clearly be hoping to be ready to participate in pre-season, when the Whites will expect to be a Premier League club. Marcelo Bielsa’s side are top of the Championship right now and hold a healthy seven-point lead over third place, with just nine fixtures left to play.