Major blow to Middlesbrough's defence
Middlesbrough boss Tony Pulis has revealed Ryan Shotton will be out for a few weeks after sustaining an injury at Hillsborough last Friday. Shotton's injury occurred last week when they came up against Sheffield Wednesday in their 2-1 win.
Shotton was unable to feature in Boro's midweek clash with Rotherham this past Tuesday, allowing Paddy McNair to make his first start since is summer move from northeast rivals Sunderland.
Until Tuesday Shotton had played every minute of Boro's Championship campaign so far, however looks set to be absent from Pulis' side for two-weeks.
Including fixtures against three of his former clubs Derby County, Stoke City and Wigan Athletic. Shotton is also set to miss a Carabao Cup fourth round tie with Crystal Palace at the Riverside.
Manager Tony Pulis said;
"He's knocked his knee and we have to see how that settles down before we can assess it,
"He'll definitely miss out on Saturday - he might have an outside chance against Stoke City but the main thing is that we get it right."
(Ryan Shotton, Image Credit: Teesside Live)
McNair replaced Shotton on Tuesday, and the Northern Ireland international is set to keep his place in the starting line-up tomorrow however Pulis feels the summer signing will benefit from an extended run in the team.
In today's press conference Pulis said;
“I thought Paddy did some good things the other day. When you consider he hasn’t really been involved in the team for quite a bit of time, for him to come in was great. I thought he did some really good things, and I’m looking forward to him kicking on.”