Charlton striker's injury not as bad as first feared
3:35pm Thursday 29th November 2012 in Latest Sport By Paul Green
Ricardo Fuller suffered the injury after his goal against Posh. PICTURE BY KEITH GILLARD.
RICARDO Fuller has responded well since suffering a hamstring injury while scoring his wonder goal in Tuesday’s 2-0 win over Peterborough.
The Charlton striker smashed home an unstoppable 77th minute shot from 25-yards to put the Addicks in front against Posh, but was immediately substituted after tweeking his hamstring in the process.
Valley manager Chris Powell has yet to decide whether Fuller will be available for selection to face Millwall on Saturday but still had some good news for anxious fans worried about how long the 33-year-old might be out of action for.
“It is not as bad as we first thought,” said Powell.
“We took him off because we’ve got to look after him.
“If he keeps coming up with goals like that I’ll put him on, let him score and take him off all the time.
“He is a mercurial talent, he is a player that will excite our fans and other fans when he is on the ball because anything can happen.
“It is a shame he felt it (hamstring) again but he has looked a lot better in the last few days since the incident.
“I’m hopeful we will get him in a place where we can get him out on the pitch and make sure he is part of us going forward and part of the games coming up.”
Another striker who might return to face Millwall is Danny Haynes after he missed the home encounters with Huddersfield and Posh.
Powell added: “Danny has an outside chance, he has missed the last couple of games.
“He has got three in three but we will have to wait and see how he responds to the bit of training he has done.
“Hopefully Danny will be up for selection but if not I know I’ve got players who are ready to step in and do their best for the club whenever they are out on the field in the starting XI.”
One man who will definitely not feature at The Den is defender Michael Morrison after he picked up his fifth yellow card of the campaign against Posh, a tally which activates an immediate one-game suspension.
Powell said: “It is a blow because I think he just grows every game with regards to how he plays.
“I’ve made him captain a few times when Johnnie Jackson hasn’t been playing and available because I think there is a bit of a leader there.
“He is only a young player, he seems to have been around forever but he has really settled into the role this year, as much as he did last year but he has gone up another level, like everyone.
“He has been a real calming presence, he has made good decisions apart from when he got booked on Tuesday, but in the main he has made some timely interceptions.
“He has popped up with a goal as well.
“That is always a part of his game which actually he can do, I’ve seen that first hand at Leicester.
“He will be a miss but of course that is why we have this squad. I always talk about it and now it is a chance for someone else to come in, fit in and play in what is a very big game for everyone.”
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