City’s injury fears over Tom Bayliss have proven to be unfounded, and he could be joined in contention tomorrow by three international Imps.
Tom limped off during our draw with Wigan Athletic after a horror challenge from Christian Saydee last weekend, and fears were that he might not be able to make this weekend’s fixture.
However, in his pre-match press conference, Michael Skubala confirm Bayliss would be fit, after training fine all week.
“Tom Bayliss has come through that tackle,” Michael said. “He’s been training all week, which is great news because when you saw that the weekend, you don’t know how that’s going to end, but he’s done really well. So, yeah, he’s good to go as well. So, that’s great news”
Rob Street and Ryley Towler will not make the game, both serve suspensions, which is likely to mean a start for Adam Reach on the left side of defence. Cover is short in the full back positions, but one Imp, Dexter Lembikisa, can play there. However, along with Justin Obikwu, he was on international duty this week, with both playing in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifying matches.
When asked if they were in contention, Michael was a little cagey.
“Probably in contention, but it might come a bit too soon,” he responded. “Not only is it they’ve been playing and we don’t know them yet, we haven’t seen them in the building or on the grass yet.”
He did confirm that their long travels were not quite as far as another summer signing, Ivan Varfolomeev, who could well be in contention for a place on the bench.
“They’re long travels for them, whereas Ivan’s not so much travelling from where he’s been. Always the challenge with international players isn’t just whether they make it, it’s the amount of time zones they travel, whether they’ve slept enough or not slept enough to be ready.
“We’ll have a look at them over the course of today, tomorrow, and then we’ll see.”
It’s likely the best all three international Imps can hope for is a place on the bench, as competition for a coveted first team spot heats up among our well-stocked squad.
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