Howe: Bournemouth man could miss start of next season

Matt Stead

Bourmemouth manager Eddie Howe admits he is not sure whether midfielder Junior Stanislas will recover from a knee injury in time to hit the ground running again next season.

Stanislas was taken off early in the second half of last weekend’s 2-2 draw at Watford with a knee injury and further tests have revealed anterior ligament damage.

Howe confirmed the 28-year-old, who scored twice in his last three games, was now set for a lengthy spell of recovery, which is likely to run on through the summer.

“Stanislas is out. He will be out for the season. He picked up a serious knee injury against Watford, and has been operated on,” Howe said at a press conference.

“We will be looking now towards next season, whether he will make pre-season for the start of the season, we don’t know.

“We will have to see how his rehab goes, but it will be a big miss for us.

“Junior brings you that mix of creative flair and passing ability with a goal threat.

“His athletic qualities as well makes him a real all-rounder and a massive player for us.”

Howe added, in a video broadcast on the club’s official website: “At first our medical team were worried about him doing his cruciate ligament but it was the anterior, the lateral meniscus.

“It is probably the better of the two evils. It has been operated on and repaired, we are quite happy with how that has gone and will look to get him back soon.”

Bournemouth host relegation-battlers Crystal Palace on Saturday, looking to push themselves a step closer to Premier League security.

With matches at Liverpool and then at home against Manchester United next up, Howe knows just what a big result beating the Eagles would be as they target the 40-point barrier.

“I have always said until it is mathematically certain, we are in a battle to stay in this division,” Howe added.

“But you cant get away from how important the game is. It is huge game for us, and we know the importance of it.

“All the run-ins will be analysed, but we know this is an important game for us and feel we can win it, but it is not going to be easy

“We will have to be forceful and take the game to Crystal Palace.”