Preston frontman Louis Moult working hard after knee ligament operation

Preston striker Louis Moult is making steady progress in his recovery from a serious knee injury which ended his season before it had really started.
Preston North End's Louis MoultPreston North End's Louis Moult
Preston North End's Louis Moult

Moult damaged the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee last August and had surgery to repair the damage the following month.

Such an injury requires a careful rehabilitation programme which for Moult means long hours in the gym to strengthen the knee and get the movement back.

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North End manager Alex Neil doesn’t think it will be too long before the 27-year-old can start to do some running, that a big step forward.

Neil said: “Louis’ progress is fine, he is working away in the gym.

“With Louis’ type of injury it is all about small steps, it is difficult if you look too far into the future.

“It is about overcoming the hurdles one by one and by the time you know it you are back out on the grass.

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“Just running and getting your fitness levels up after a bad injury is the bit you can’t wait for.

“You feel at that stage you are getting fit to play, whereas when you are healing, just getting movement back into the knee and trying to strengthen it, some of the days can be quite monotonous.

“Mentally it is a tester when you are in the gym and all the lads are going out to train every day.

“You are on the bike, on the rower, it is not easy.

“Louis is a strong lad, he’ll be fine.

“He won’t be far away from running but it is a gradual process building it back up.

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“It is the type of injury and the length of it when you don’t want it to happen again.

“So you take all the necessary precautions in terms of building him back up.”

After not featuring in the squad on the opening day of the season at Millwall, Moult started the following game against Wigan – the side North End meet today at the DW Stadium (12.30pm).

He scored with a header in the 3-0 win and put in a display that day which offered plenty of optimism for the campaign ahead, leading the attack very impressively.

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But in the first half of the following game against Swansea at the Liberty Stadium, Moult tore his cruciate ligament chasing a through ball.

As he stretched out his right leg to try and bring the ball down, all his weight went through his left knee and it buckled.

Moult’s centre-forward slot in the squad has not been filled in his absence.

David Nugent and Jayden Stockley are North End’s two out-and-out strikers, with Sean Maguire and Tom Barkhuizen used there too but in the main on the wing.