Santa Cruz on the mend
20 Oct 2007 - 09:13:35
Blackburn Rovers manager Mark Hughes will not rush Roque Santa Cruz back to first-team action, even though the Paraguay international has made a rapid recovery from a knee injury.
The 26-year-old former Bayern Munich striker was forced to pull out his country's World Cup qualifiers against Peru and Uruguay so that he could rest his knee and ease the pain caused by tendinitis.
It had been expected that he would remain on the sidelines for several weeks, but the injury is responding well to treatment.
Hughes said: "Roque's injury has really settled down. We're extremely delighted with that because it was a real worry for us.
"But if there's any doubt, he won't be risked. We'll make sure he plays when he's capable of making an impact."
In more good news for Rovers, captain Ryan Nelsen could return to action against Reading after being sidelined for the last month with a leg injury.
Hughes added: "Ryan's made some good progress this week as well. He seems a lot happier with the injury that he's had."
