QPR hopeful Johansen will be fit for Norwich game
QPR boss Mick Beale says he is hopeful Stefan Johnasen will be fit to face Norwich on Wednesday after the the Rangers skipper limped off with an ankle injury in the 2-0 defeat at Birmingham.
Johansen, Jake Clarke-Salter and Tyler Roberts all departed before the start of the second half but Beale said he is most optimistic about the Norwegian midfielder returning for the clash at Carrow Road.
“I need to find out about Jake. I am hopeful with Stefan – it’s his ankle and it’s quite swollen and I am hoping he should be fine to play,” Beale said.
“The break between Friday to Wednesday should help us.
“Tyler was a recurrence of the calf injury, which is really disappointing because it’s a minor injury.
“We gave it 10 days and he’s trained on it and we scanned it and thought it would be fine.
“But fingers crossed for him, he has the World Cup to look forward to.
“With Jake … it was a bit of a strange one, he landed funny on his left knee so we will just have to wait and see.”
Beale said the loss of Roberts added to his frustration at St Andrew’s after leaving Chris Willock out of the squad to give him extra time to get up to speed following the hamstring issue that has seen him miss five games.
“I didn’t want to risk him tonight, I thought with Tyler coming back we could save him for Wednesday,” Beale explained.
“It’s important for Chris. He is one of the best players in the league, but he has only played nine of the 17 games and to be one of the main players in our team we need him to be consistently fit, because we need to build the team around him.
“I have to be fair to Chris too and the temptation is to have him here for 20 minutes.
“But that means he cannot get more in the tank in terms of fitness for Wednesday and it is important I do things for the long term.”
31/10/2022 @ 1:22 pm
I can understand Myke;s frustration, however, I couldnt care less about Leeds supporters, especially the ones who think they know everything but in fact know next to nothing. For me, any player who performs get to play, the others wont get anywhere near the bench. Skivers wont survive for long at QPR.
29/10/2022 @ 2:46 pm
Leeds fans warned us what to expect from Roberts, misses more than he plays. Bet he’s fit for the World Cup though! As for Richards, what is the story there? Beale can say after last night that it is ‘still early in the season’, but the reality is we well into the second third and these ‘Premier League’ players are a significant drain on resources when they are not playing or contributing.It is fairly clear that Armstrong is not a Championship player yet, but Beale has been forced to use him, while several thousand quid a week lounges around on the treatment table. We were promised an improvement on the injury situation from last season,when all the physios, sport scientists and fitness experts were brought under one umbrella this season. But apart from Dieng having an injury-free run, I’m not seeing much evidence of it. It must be incredibly frustrating for Beale, not being able to get all his best players on the pitch at the same time, considering the job he has done thus far,with an injury hit squad.