Cardiff City will be without Dylan Lawlor and Rubin Colwill for Saturday's Championship trip to Middlesbrough, with head coach Brian Barry-Murphy providing a further update on the fitness of captain Calum Chambers.
The Bluebirds head to the Riverside Stadium looking to build on Tuesday night's 5-1 victory over Watford, but will once again have to contend with several key absentees.
Lawlor and Colwill ruled out
Lawlor is definitely out after suffering a hamstring injury during the win over Watford, while Colwill is also unavailable as he continues his recovery from an ankle problem.
Lawlor's latest setback is particularly frustrating after the defender had only recently worked his way back from a knee injury sustained while on international duty with Wales at the start of summer. The 20-year-old made his first start of the campaign against Watford but was forced off during the first half, with the extent of the hamstring problem to be determined by a scan, which was initially pencilled in for Wednesday but will now take place on Friday.
Barry-Murphy confirmed the defender would miss Saturday's match against Middlesbrough, with the club awaiting further information on the injury. Colwill will also sit out the trip to Teesside, although the manager's latest comments suggest the midfielder is making progress. The Wales international has been sidelined by an ankle problem, with Cardiff taking a cautious approach to his recovery.
Salech could boost attack
Cardiff, who will also have Krystian Bielik back from suspension, could receive a significant boost in attack, however, with Yousef Salech potentially in contention to feature against Middlesbrough. The striker suffered a shoulder injury during the closing stages of the victory over Charlton Athletic last month and has been working his way back to fitness.
Barry-Murphy confirmed the forward was making encouraging progress, with a final assessment required before a decision is made on his availability.
"Rubin won't be available for Saturday, that's definite. We'll assess Yousef and see how he is, but he's making really good progress," the Irishman said, adding that the striker had "a chance" of being fit.
Salech's potential return would be welcome news for Cardiff, who have had to find alternative solutions in attack during his absence. Jack Moylan has impressed in recent weeks, including Tuesday night's victory over Watford, when Cardiff demonstrated their attacking threat despite their injury problems. The manager will be keen to have Salech available again as the Bluebirds prepare to face one of the Championship's leading sides.
Chambers remains longer-term concern
Chambers remains a longer-term concern. The Bluebirds captain is yet to feature this season, with Barry-Murphy previously citing injuries to his knee, neck and back. However, the Cardiff boss has now offered a clearer explanation of the difficulties the defender has experienced during his recovery.
The Cardiff captain has not played a competitive game this season, and while there are encouraging signs, a return is not imminent.
"There is light at the end of the tunnel. It's just impossible to say in terms of timescale. He's still not going to be a return to play soon," Barry-Murphy said.
"His knee is a lot better, but he has been taking a load away from it. So he's quite a long way away. But he's feeling better. When I saw him on Tuesday, he felt a lot more comfortable and a lot more positive than he has done in previous weeks and meetings. It's semi-positive and hopefully he'll make steps week to week."
Chambers' absence has been a significant blow for Cardiff, who have been without the experienced defender throughout the opening stages of their Championship campaign, while Lawlor and Will Fish have also had their injury concerns. Barry-Murphy admitted the situation had been difficult for the player, particularly given the uncertainty surrounding the recovery process.
Initially, Cardiff took an "aggressive approach" in an attempt to get Chambers back quickly. When that failed to produce the desired outcome, the club reduced his workload in the hope that the knee would settle. However, that approach did not bring the expected improvement either. The defender has since seen another specialist and has been given a prolonged period of rest to allow the knee to heal, particularly in relation to the swelling he had been experiencing.
Barry-Murphy believes Chambers is now in a more positive frame of mind, although he stressed that there remains considerable work to do before the defender can return. "I think he's better this week," the manager said. "There was a lot of uncertainty and it was difficult for him to understand what were the steps he had to take."
