Graham Alexander gives injury update on Preston North End star Johnny Kenny
Johnny Kenny was forced off in the 13th minute against Sheffield United.
Graham Alexander has confirmed Johnny Kenny suffered a hamstring injury in Preston North End’s 3-2 defeat to Sheffield United, but the full severity is not yet clear.
Preston were looking bright and competitive in the early stages against Sheffield United after Leo Leroy gave them the lead in two minutes, but Kenny’s injury shortly afterwards came as a hammer blow.
The game was only 10 minutes old when the striker chased down a promising pass over the top from Stanley Mills, but just as he reached the ball he suddenly pulled up. It wasn’t immediately clear what the issue was, but when Kenny got to his feet, clutched his right hamstring and crumpled back to the floor, the injury became obvious.
After a few minutes of receiving treatment, Kenny was forced to leave the game in the 13th minute to be replaced by Callum Lang, who went on to score North End’s second goal with a tidy finish.
Alexander did not have an update on Kenny’s diagnosis on Tuesday night beyond the assumption it was his hamstring and that it ‘didn’t look good.’ Now those fears have been confirmed.
Speaking to BBC Radio Lancashire on Wednesday ahead of Saturday’s visit of Southampton, Alexander said: “It's a hamstring injury, we're sending him for a scan and we'll see how the results are from that. When you come off that early, it's not a great sign.
“I don't think he had a full pre-season at his previous club with games and so forth. Because of the dynamic nature of his movements and him physically, he's always going to be at that sharp end of potential muscle injuries, unfortunately.
“It was a blow, obviously, last night, so early in the game and probably continue to be like that for a weeks more.”
Preston team news for Southampton fixture
Thankfully, the manager did not mention any further problems from the match other than general ‘bits and pieces’, explaining on Tuesday night that Mills was only moving uncomfortably when he was taken off due to cramp.
He added on Wednesday: “Yeah [is everyone else fit?]. There's a couple of the boys into the game last night feeling a few bits and pieces from Saturday and today, similar again. But you could ask me that after every game, there's going to be four, five that will have little bits of things.
“It's how they recover, it's how they regenerate in the short period in between. It stresses the importance of a solid pre-season to prepare for these fixture lists when you get right into the thick of it.”
Preston will be severely depleted for the game against promotion-chasing Southampton as Leroy has joined Kenny on the absentee list due to suspension. The Frenchman picked up his fifth booking of the season against the Blades, meaning he will now serve a one-game ban.
Meanwhile, Ali McCann, Liam Gibbs, Lewis Gibson all remain side lined, though Caleb Wiley did come on for his first minutes under Alexander at half-time after nearly two months between appearances.
Alexander was impressed by him, saying after the game: “We haven't seen Caleb because of his injuries. We wanted to have a look at him that position and I thought he did really well.”