The severity of the calf injury that forced Middlesbrough loanee Josh Coburn from the pitch during Saturday’s loss to Luton Town will be a source of anxiety for Millwall.
Two weeks prior, Coburn had made a big impression on his Lions debut by scoring in a 3-0 triumph over Sheffield Wednesday. However, he was forced to leave the game after just 32 minutes, as Millwall went on to lose 1-0. Coburn was replaced by Macaulay Langstaff, a striker from Teesside who joined from Notts County in the summer and is still waiting for his first Championship goal.
After defender Jake Cooper was also injured in the first half, manager Neil Harris reacted by telling the South London Press, “To lose your big man after 20 minutes is tough.” We’re really frustrated by this, and we hope he returns soon. He and Jake both appear to have calf [injuries]. We won’t know until we give them the next 24 to 48 hours to calm down. However, they are two of our most important players.
Hopefully, Coburn’s problem doesn’t turn out to be too bad for Millwall. Following a strong debut performance, Harris expressed his delight for the 21-year-old and called him a crucial member of the team. Prior to this one, Michael Carrick mentioned that when recently back in Manchester, Millwall supporters had stopped him to express their gratitude for letting them loan out the striker.
Adding to Coburn’s fitness issue, Millwall is already without Tom Bradshaw due to a’serious’ hamstring injury that he sustained prior to the Boro man’s arrival. He did not specify when he would return. Mihailo Ivanovic, a summer addition who cost the club a record, has also been out and has not yet made an appearance.
In addition to a strained hamstring, the Serbian has a broken fifth metatarsal, and Harris would rather be safe than sorry. Harris pointed out that there was a chance Josh would be fit for Saturday’s match against QPR, saying, “In the end, if Josh isn’t going to be available, then we need him in the short-term as well.”
In other news, Sammy Silvera participated in the last half hour of Portsmouth’s 3-0 loss to West Brom; at the time of the Australian forward’s introduction, Pompey was already two down. Although he was considered to have given their attack more tenacity, Alex Mowatt, a former Boro loanee, scored the game’s second goal in the 92nd minute to put the Baggies on top of the league.
Leyton Orient’s first victory of the season came thanks to a clean sheet from keeper Zach Hemming, who helped the team win 1-0 away at Reading and escape the League One relegation zone. He was thanking Hemming for these three points, only weeks after boss Richie Wellens had some harsh words for the Boro loanee.
“It was a really good performance,” stated the Os manager. Reading continued, gave us a little pressure at the end, and presented us with a few chances. However, we persisted in adding all those blocks, and Zach really stood out in my opinion. We praise him for the three points today, and it will do him and his confidence the world of good. He was quite good.
Ultimately, Sonny Finch played the last 20 minutes of Saturday’s 3-0 loss to rivals AFC Wimbledon after recovering from a back ailment sustained during his MK Dons debut.
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