Crystal Palace news: Medical expert gutted after Nathan Ferguson latest – ‘such a shame’
Nathan Ferguson will be out of action for Crystal Palace until at least April – but the main priority is getting him ready for next season.
That is the view of injury expert Ben Dinnery, who runs the Premier Injuries site and has a background in medicine and data analysis.
Ferguson has seen just eight minutes of action in the Premier League since his switch from West Brom in July 2020.
A serious knee injury and ankle problems have blighted his Selhurst Park career so far, but he has edged towards fitness in recent weeks.
But per BBC Sport last Friday (11 February), Patrick Viera revealed that the defender, 21, will miss “five or six weeks” with a fresh hamstring injury.
The latest bump in the road may cause Palace to turn their attention to setting Ferguson up for pre-season ahead of 2022-23, claims Dinnery.
“His knee hampered him since his arrival from West Brom,” he told Football Insider‘s Adam Williams.
“Then he had the Achilles rupture and it’s just been a case of managing him since then. So there have been a lot of problems.
“We’re talking about a player who has very few minutes since he’s joined the club.
“This latest setback gives us an indication that we’re looking at maybe a grade two tear.
“Given where we are in the season, a best-case scenario would be after the international break in April.
“But there could be a decision made in terms of just forgetting about this campaign, resetting and trying to get a good pre-season ahead of next season.
“He needs to get into a position where he can complete those sessions and go into the campaign fit, ready and able to compete for that starting XI.
“It’s such a shame that he hasn’t been able to demonstrate that potential yet.”
Palace drew 0-0 with Brentford last Saturday (12 February).
That result leaves them 13th in the league table after 24 games.
In other news, ex-Fifa official claims Crystal Palace robbed at Brentford as “surprising” footage analysed.