Chester on way back but there’s no rush for his return
LIAM Rosenior says James Chester is getting “closer” to making his Derby County return.
But Rosenior says he does not want any member of his squad taking injections to play through the pain barrier.
Chester is recovering from tendinopathy in his Achilles after featuring twice in pre-season against Hertha Berlin and Leicester City.
The former Aston Villa centreback is making progress and Rosenior is not willing to rush players back in case it turns minor injuries into major ones.
Rosenior has experienced tendinopathy during his own career so he understands Chester’s injury and says his workload is being tailored to his needs.
Ahead of today’s home game against Barnsley (3pm), the Rams interim boss also stressed that he does not want any players having injections to get them through 90 minutes so early in the season.
“He’s closer,” Rosenior said of Chester. “They’ve accelerated the process in terms of the work he’s doing outside.
“The thing with James is I’ve had the same thing. It’s an Achilles, it’s not a serious Achilles problem. It’s tendinopathy and it gets really stiff and really sore.
“The only way you can manage that is to manage the way that you work. You’ve got to tailor the load slowly to make sure he gets back to full fitness. He’s going to be absolutely fine.
“But I’m not a manager that likes putting players out who aren’t 100 per cent. I don’t think it is right for them.
“I don’t think it’s the right way to go. I don’t want anyone taking injections to play. I want a fully fit team not just now but for the whole season. If that means you miss out
for a couple of weeks, it means you miss out.
“I was living on painkillers for the last few years of my career and playing off injections. It’s not good for you long term. That’s something that I’ve said to myself as a coach. Obviously, there are games where it’s a cup final or it’s a huge game, where you’re going to do that.
“But for the first few weeks of the season, I’m not risking any player’s wellbeing or pushing them if they’re not fully fit 100 per cent because of their value to the club.
“If I push players forward who are not 100 per cent I’m not just doing a disservice to them, I’m doing a disservice to the rest of the club. I’m not willing as a manager to do that.”
While Derby await news on Chester, summer signing David McGoldrick is available for today’s game as Rosenior’s decision not to rush the forward back paid off. He has trained this week following a niggling injury that ruled him out for the start of the season.
“David will be in the squad and will be on the bench,” said Rosenior. “He’s fit, he’s done enough training and he’s in a really good place.”