Leeds United have confirmed that Patrick Bamford has been diagnosed with a foot injury which could see him miss the remainder of the season.
The 28-year-old has been plagued by injury issues all season. He has featured just 11 times in all competitions, having missed significant periods with hamstring and ankle problems.
Bamford started the 3-2 win over Wolves before the international break but limped off after just 23 minutes, and Leeds have now confirmed that he has ruptured his plantar fascia - an injury to the sole of his foot - which usually takes around six weeks to heal.
Fortunately, there is confidence that Bamford will not require surgery, which gives him the slimmest of chances of returning this season, but the Englishman faces a race against time.
Leeds will close out their season against Brentford on May 22, around eight weeks after this latest diagnosis. Even if Bamford's injury heals in six weeks, his match fitness may not return in time.
“As all of the stats show, Patrick has put his body on the line for Leeds United for a number of seasons, he has played with a plantar fascia injury for the last 12 months and despite treatment and a prolonged period of rehabilitation, the injury has progressed from a partial tear to a full rupture," Leeds' head of medicine and performance, Rob Price, said.
“As all sports medics know, injuries to the plantar fascia are notoriously difficult to manage, but all concerned are confident that he will make a full recovery from this injury in good time.
“Patrick has been incredibly unlucky this year, his game time has been limited by different injuries including an ankle injury sustained at Newcastle and hamstring and quad injuries once back in training and matchday squads.
“What he needs is a period of rest and rehabilitation to allow his body to fully recover.”
Source : 90min