General manager of football operations Lee O’Neill says "nothing goes unturned" as the Blues look for reasons behind the injury problems which have plagued the squad over the last few years but adds that Town aren't the only club to have had such issues.

Last week, Kane Vincent-Young’s long-awaited return was put on hold for another six weeks after the right-back hyper-extended his knee in training.

The 24-year-old has been out of action since October 2019 having undergone two groin operations during that campaign. He returned in pre-season but suffered an achilles problem which has subsequently kept him sidelined and was close to being back in match action before picking up his latest injury.

However, Vincent-Young is far from the only player the Blues have lost to injury in recent seasons - 13 were unavailable for the Oxford match in December - and the ex-Colchester man is similarly not unique in having suffered setbacks during his recovery and rehabilitation.

O’Neill says he has looked into factors which may have contributed to the injury problems.

“First of all, contrary to what other people say externally, I know that our medical team and ground staff and everyone else work extremely hard to try and provide the best possible facilities and the best possible outcome for all of our players,” he told TWTD.

“We recruit staff that have got expertise and knowledge in that area. I have looked into the traction control of grass, I’ve looked into footwear, I’ve looked into training loads, GPS, everything.

“Unfortunately there are things we don’t have answers to. There are some things you can attribute soft tissue injuries to in relation to the way people train. There are contact injuries, we’re in a contact sport, that you cannot legislate for.

“They are very common also outside Ipswich Town, they do happen at other clubs. We’ve had more than most, but that is what it is, we have had injuries and we will continue to look at every aspect from the medical point of view.

“[Physio] Matt [Byard] and his staff work very hard to try and make sure the lads are fully fit. With Kane in particular they have been very diligent in trying to get him rehabilitated back to being able to get out on the grass.

“We obviously delayed his game experience and made sure he had a good amount of training in place and he simply got his studs caught in the grass and hyper-extended.

“Very unfortunate but it’s part of football unfortunately, people do get injured. We will continue to observe and review everything and it’s on a yearly basis, month-by-month, week-by-week, we look at everything. I don’t have the answers unfortunately.

“We speak to other clubs, look at Arsenal, look at Liverpool now, they’ve got the best of everything, they really have, so to have four central defenders out, to have their centre forwards out, for Arsenal to have the number of injuries they have season upon season, they looked at everything. There is no explanation of some aspects.

“Even when we’re recruiting players [we look at those] that have had robustness, that have been playing week in, week out, at their previous injury history. We looked at all of that but unfortunately for us Kane has had a few since he’s come here.

“He is as determined as ever to work hard and we’re hoping it’s only a small blip and in four-to-six weeks he might be back again.

“We’ve just got to keep working hard with the players and try and avoid getting injuries, but if you speak to other clubs they’re not dissimilar.”

He says the pandemic and the protocols which have been put in place haven’t helped matters.

“We can’t do the normal things we were doing prior to lockdown," he added. "Turning up in your car, going out and training, going straight back in your car and go back home again, that’s not normal, you would have had massage, recovery rooms, doing extra strength training and stuff like that.

“It’s been very difficult to do our normal programme over the last nine months. Players have had that difficulty as well.

“A shorter pre-season, getting back again and going back into a games programme as quickly as we did, the most condensed games programme we’ve ever had with the number of games we’ve played in a short period of time, it’s just not normal and I don’t have the answers unfortunately, I wish I did.

“But we will continue to keep reviewing everything and continue to look at everything and we’ll definitely search out and seek new advice, you always look at new footwear, you look at everything, the whole lot. Nothing goes unturned to try and get answers.”

Photo: Matchday Images

aas1010 added 17:11 - Feb 11 We want answers in every aspects . Then deal with them . Lambert out ASAP ! Get some one who knows modern football
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rabbit added 17:12 - Feb 11 Saxon, I have no doubt you will be down marked for your post even though what you have posted is unequivocal fact!
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braveblue added 17:33 - Feb 11 O'Neil never fails to disappoint. ‘Contrary to what others say externally'. So defensive. He has looked at everything and does not know the answer. Sums up this club. Maybe if Evans stopped buying cheap, injury prone players that would help!!
1

Bert added 17:34 - Feb 11 Some posters clearly don't read what is said or the house rules for that matter. I would expect the club to be looking at why so many injuries have occurred. Why slate a statement and change the subject to something else. Such posts are just childish. Compare that to some of the reasoned posts on this subject which show insight.
2

BeattiesBackPocket added 17:37 - Feb 11 This guy is literally the Inspector Clouseau of ‘looking into things' nice guy but again just sent out to spurt out the generic repetitive cr@p from the owner. We've had so many injuries past 7 or 8 years and some of these players mcgoldrick as a highlight have left the club and gone injury free past 2/3 seasons. There was a court case from a young youth kid a couple of years ago also about the treatment he received from the club pretty much ending his career.

2

bingboast added 17:43 - Feb 11 Who would the fans on here want in to replace Lambert ?, baring in mind they would then be wanting his head & for him to go within 6 months.
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WeWereZombies added 17:44 - Feb 11 So Vincent-Young had the wrong studs screwed into his boots...
0

Cloddyseedbed added 17:46 - Feb 11 Seems the only thing you don't review or go in enough detail on is the managers ability and results. Shame on you.
5

Cloddyseedbed added 17:46 - Feb 11 Seems the only thing you don't review or go in enough detail on is the managers ability and results. Shame on you.
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Westy added 17:50 - Feb 11 This review is long over due. Not only do the training methods seem to encourage injuries, recovery seems to take longer than it should. Moreover, we seem to buy them injured - KVY for example.
2

therein61 added 18:38 - Feb 11 We are continuously told how good they are in training i.e; competitive, great football and tactics maybe just maybe they are knackered or mind numbed come match day the whole off field set up stinks.
1

billys_boots added 18:45 - Feb 11 BotesdaleBlue There were plenty of injuries in the 70s and the players were injected with painkillers, which is why they can all barely walk now. However, the advances in sports science aren't always used well. For example, in the 70s the players would train pre-season running on beach, thereby increasing their VO2max and utilising supporting muscles and ligaments without the pressure on the joints. They would also play at quite regular intervals during the season. Training nowadays is closely monitored with hr, gps, etc perhaps other factors aren't always taken in to consideration. Young players can spend a lot of time in the gym, lifting weights before their bodies are developed and whilst this strengthens large muscles it might affect the range of joint movement and add strain to the smaller supporting muscles. Result being the desired hench look but increased injuries.

2

Ipswichbusiness added 18:48 - Feb 11 I suspect that one reason is the excessive reliance on free transfer/loan players which we have had over the years. Basically, they are available “free” or on loan for a reason; it could be that they need experience, aren't good enough or have a poor injury record.
1

NowtonBlue added 18:54 - Feb 11 When David McGoldrick and David Webster were with us they were quite injury prone, seems strange that since they have left us they have hardly missed a game for their new clubs; and in the case of Webster both clubs he has joined. Do the SAS hold our training sessions?
4

bluesince76 added 19:23 - Feb 11 Is Lambert gone yet.
2

dirtydingusmagee added 19:35 - Feb 11 strange that O'Neil only appears very occasionally,and waffles on, this is normally when things are getting really sh#tty ,and seem to be solely diversionary .A smoke bomb lobbed in to try and hide the mess. The trouble is its been done over and over again since Evans took over ,. Bullsh#t and mushrooms comes to mind . EVANS WAKE UP ,MAN UP. SHAKE UP AND GET US OUT OF THIS F#CK UP .

3

LimerickTractorBoy added 19:40 - Feb 11 Bingboast do you think PL is doing an adequate job?
0

LimerickTractorBoy added 19:44 - Feb 11 Bert IMHO the reason is because totally disillusioned supporters are using every article to Vent their understandable frustrations. PL just ain't cutting it and then banning reporters and sending his assistant out to do his interviews. Shur everyone is pure fed up.
3

richardpaul added 19:50 - Feb 11 Is he still here
0

suffolkblueeye added 21:29 - Feb 11 Screw the medical view point you idiot, how about a managerial view point you pointless cow pat
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eddiespearitt03 added 02:33 - Feb 12 "WE will continue to look at every aspect from a medical point of view" Does that include mental health ? No, not the manager,s....i mean the well being of the supporter.
1

madmouse1959 added 02:42 - Feb 12 The problem might be there are not enough football matches. We don,t compete in Europe. We don,t compete in the EFL Cup. We don,t compete in the FA Cup. We certainly cant seem able enough to compete for a promotion battle out of League One. Maybe the injuries are attributed to too much exertion on the training ground ? Piggy back rides are bad for your knees, i know that much.

0

Steve_ITFC_Sweden added 05:15 - Feb 12 Mick Mills remarked on the intensity of the pre-match warm-ups and thought they were overdoing it. Maybe a desire to push things to the limit is actually not beneficial. On another tack, I agree our squad is far too large. A smaller squad would probably be more tight-knit and more determined. It can't be very motivating to not know whether or not you might be playing for another six weeks.

1

Blueknight85 added 07:05 - Feb 12 The answers can be found in the changes to hom life Mcgoldrick traveling long distance.. younger players spending more time in seated positions playing consoles and browsing smart phones. No coincidence it has worsened for everybody in lock downs. Make sire they keep active. Trust me i googled it haha
0

Nobbysnuts added 08:59 - Feb 12 Just go away o'neill you pointless pot of p#ss......
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