Berra – Doyle loss a big blow

20110328

Wolves defender reflects on loss of key frontman

Last updated: 28th March 2011  

Berra: Survival bid

Doyle: Ligament damage

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Christophe Berra is hoping Wolves can handle the untimely loss of Kevin Doyle in their survival bid.

Mick McCarthy’s side have been rocked by the news that their highly-rated striker suffered medial knee ligament damage while away on international duty.

Doyle was forced out of Republic of Ireland’s 2-1 victory over Macedonia on Saturday after just 17 minutes.

Ireland coach Giovanni Trapatonni revealed afterwards that he expected the 27-year-old to be sidelined for between one and two months.

Should he be missing for the full eight weeks, he is unlikely to turn out for Wolves again this season.

That would represent a serious blow to their efforts to preserve their top flight status.

Berra admits as much, with the Scotland international defender keen to point out just how important Doyle is to the Molineux cause.

“It’s a massive blow for us, he’s a top player, he does a great job for us up front,” he said.

“But we’ve got good strikers on the bench in Sylvan Ebanks-Blake and Steven Fletcher, who have come in this season and done well and scored goals for us.

“So we won’t be getting down about that, we’ll move on.”

Scan

McCarthy revealed on Monday that Doyle is to undergo further medical tests in an effort to determine the full extent of his injury.

He said: “Kevin reported back to us this morning to be assessed and has gone off for a scan.”

Wolves are currently 18th in the Premier League standings, with goal difference keeping them inside the bottom three.

They now have eight fixtures in which to steer a course to safety, and Berra is confident they can do just that.

He added: “I think it’s two points between six or eight teams and we’ve actually got better points this season than at the same point last season, so it shows our improvement.

“We’re a better team now, we play better football overall. As players, as individuals, we’ve improved. So we’ll go onwards and upwards.

“We’re four games unbeaten and we’ll be going away to Newcastle on Saturday in high spirits.”

Barclays Prem To Stay Up 10/11 Win Outright: Wolves 2/5

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