Bony’s battling back after ‘slight setback’ holds up his return
SWANSEA City boss Graham Potter says injured striker Wilfried Bony has suffered a “slight setback” in his recovery but revealed he should not be too far away from a return.
Potter was speaking to the media ahead of a testing trip to Middlesbrough this weekend.
The Swans boss was quizzed about injuries, with the 43-yearold providing an update on the state of his squad, which has endured fitness issues in recent weeks.
He said: “(We are) making progress, there are no fresh problems.
“Tom Carroll is making good progress, he will be involved as will Jay (Fulton). The game will probably come too soon for Bersant (Celina) and Leroy (Fer), the rest of the group is okay.
“It is good to have as many players as possible to select from, I want as many options as possible.
“We still had a couple of players out of the squad (at Stoke), we used (George) Byers from the start and that has worked well.
“He has been fighting for his chance and it was good to give him his debut and he proved he can help us. We have got players and I am happy with the group, the challenge is to improve and get better and that’s the next stage.”
The line of questioning turned to the Ivorian, who has been out of action since suffering a serious knee injury in February. Potter said: “He had a slight setback with a strain in his hamstring, not too bad, but put him back a few days but he is working good and we can hope he can join the group.
“I am not going to put a timsecale on Wilf, we take it as it comes.
“Nobody likes the rehab process but he has been professional and worked hard.
“You need time and patience to recover. He is in good spirits and is not going to be too far away.”
Nathan Dyer and Wayne Routledge were both involved at the bet365 Stadium on Tuesday night, the first minutes they have seen all season.
Luciano Narsingh, though, was not involved and has yet to feature under Potter.
“He is working away and available, there is no issue there,” said Potter.
“He has been in a similar situation to Nathan and Wayne. He is fighting to get in the team and we will try and help him.”
“No, that’s quite unfair from what I’ve seen,” he said.
“These perceptions can gain momentum but I see a good football team, they dominated the ball with good possession against Bolton.
“They are organised and have other weapons like set-plays but it would be disrespectful to label Tony’s teams like that.
“They play good football and I respect him a lot.
“The players know what he wants and they play good football, so I think that attachment is unfair. I can only go on what I am watching, there are good players there.
“Downing, Howson are good players and they have made good signings. They are a good team, they are second in the Championship and one of the strong sides in the league.
“He has had a fantastic career, he is up there with anyone as British manager with his longevity and organising his team and the strength of the players.
“The rest is subjective talk, but his know-how in football and getting results then he is somebody who has a fantastic record. Sometimes you don’t appreciate someone until they are not there, I know how difficult it is and I have a huge respect for him.”
Potter will no doubt look to his young starlets again this weekend after they once again proved they are up to the task against Stoke in midweek.