Watmore is ‘doing well’ on the road to recovery
CHRIS Coleman says Duncan Watmore is ‘doing well’ as he continues his rehabilitation from a second ACL knee injury.
The energetic Sunderland winger was just six games into his return in November from the season-ending injury when disaster struck.
In emotional scenes, the 23-yearold was stretchered off against Millwall after, it later transpired, he suffered a reoccurrence.
Watmore has since undergone surgery on the problem and is working hard at the Academy of Light to make a full recovery and be back in action for the Black Cats next season.
However, manager Coleman, drawing on his own experiences of long-term injuries as a player, is keen to make sure Watmore stays in and around the squad so he is not to feel too isolated.
Updating on Watmore’s wellbeing, Coleman revealed: “Duncan came to the Middlesbrough game recently, which was the plan to bring him to some of the games and to keep him involved.
“That is important because he is out long-term.
“Duncan is a cracking kid, he really is a great boy.
“What would you give to have him with us? I am not just talking about his ability but as a person too - he is a really good person, a good kid. Sadly, sometimes that is how it works.
“He is OK and in a good frame of mind and he is chipping away at his rehabilitation work.”
In just 322 minutes of action the England under-21 international provided three assists for Sunderland and his absence is a huge miss for the relegation-threatened Wearsiders.
Meanwhile, Jack Rodwell’s proposed trial at Dutch side Vitesse Arnhem has been cancelled for ‘organisational reasons.’
The Sunderland midfielder had agreed to go to the Netherlands to do some training with the Eredivisie side in an attempt to kick-start his career, his time at the Stadium of Light as good as over.
Rodwell, who earns £70,000 per week at the Black Cats, has told Chris Coleman he does not want to play, according to the manager, and Sunderland have agreed to tear the £10m-man’s contract up 18 months early to allow him to move elsewhere.
Yet the former England international midfielder (pictured below) has said he does not want to risk cancelling his contract and being unemployed, so is instead earning his high wage while training alone with no realistic chance of playing.
A statement yesterday from Vitesse was vague but read: “Due to organisational reasons, Jack Rodwell’s trial with Vitesse does not take place.” It is not known whether the player’s fitness had anything to do with the trial not taking place.
In a national newspaper interview earlier this month the 26-yearold defended his injury record and said he felt fitter than ever and was training three times a day at the Academy of Light, albeit ostracised from the rest of the first-team squad.