Shoulder woe for Vaughan
19 Jul 2007 - 07:34:00
Everton have received a huge pre-season blow following the news that James Vaughan is likely to be sidelined for 'months rather than weeks' after dislocating his shoulder.
The 19-year-old striker picked up the injury less than 15 minutes into the Toffees' friendly with Preston North End on Wednesday evening.
The injury-plagued forward will now miss the club's pre-season tour of the United States plus at least the opening month of the campaign.
Vaughan suffered a serious knee ligament injury two years ago, while he missed matches towards the end of the last campaign after severing an artery in his leg.
"It will be months rather than weeks with James - a couple of months I should expect," assistant-manager Alan Irvine told the club's official website.
"Having suffered the injury myself I know how painful it is and how long it can take to get back.
"It is not a long, long term injury - it is not anything like his knee problem - but it is not something we expect him to return from in a matter of weeks.
"It is bad, bad luck for him. After being out for so long he did really well at the end of last season and was looking good in pre-season so it is not just bad luck for the lad but also for the team."
