Blues youngster Jack Lankester will miss the next few weeks with a back injury, while midfielder Emyr Huws has suffered a setback as he continues his return from more than a year out.

Speaking at his lunchtime press conference, manager Paul Lambert revealed Lankester, 18, would be out for the next few matches.

“Everybody’s not too bad, but young Jack’s going to be out for a number of weeks, which is a blow. But everybody else is OK,” he said.

“Jack’s got a problem with his back at the minute so we’ll just have to manage him through that.

“Obviously, the load has been a helluva a lot for him to take on at 18 years of age. A year ago I think he was out on loan at Bury Town and the rise for him as been dramatic. But he’s going to be a player, he’s going to be a right top player.

“It’s just been a build-up of stress, the demands of it. It can be a common thing for a young player with the load. But he’ll be back and he’s going to be a really good footballer.”

Huws has yet to play since suffering a knee injury at Middlesbrough at the start of December 2017, but was on the bench for the Rotherham match but dropped out of the party which travelled to Blackburn last week due to a calf problem.

“He’s had a little setback,” Lambert confirmed. “It’s not as bad but it’s a little setback, so we’ll just have to nurture him through it, which is a blow because I think Emyr’s got a really good footballer in there but the big challenge for him is to try and stay fit. He’s not [in contention for this weekend], he’s not ready for it.”

The Town manager says he hopes the Wales international will be back at some stage in the remaining months of the season.

“I would hope so, that's the plan to get the lad back playing games,” he added. “It’s frustrating for him. It really must be a nightmare for him having to go through this every so often. For his own sake, I think it’s important mentally to try and get him back playing.”

Another midfielder Tom Adeyemi is yet to feature since pre-season due to an achilles injury which eventually underwent surgery having missed most of the previous campaign with a hamstring problem.

“Tom’s another one, he’s doing OK,” Lambert continued. “He’s been out for over 14 or 15 months, a helluva long time [out] these lads here have had with injuries.

“As I said before, mentally it’s no good for them. We’ll just have to wait and see how his injury gets on but he’s doing OK.”

Grant Ward is out for the season having suffered rupturing his anterior cruciate ligament at QPR on Boxing Day.

Photo: TWTD

cat added 14:44 - Jan 24 Gutted about Lankester, great potential and defo one for the future. Time to offload Huws as this situation is becoming frustrating and hardly helping the cause.
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beornioblue added 14:44 - Jan 24 unbelievable .... you couldn't make up our injuries
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Steve_ITFC_Sweden added 15:01 - Jan 24 Bu***er! Still, Lankester is going to tear up Div. 1 next season. Have my severe doubts Huws will ever make it. Hope I'm wrong.
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HALLSJ added 15:06 - Jan 24 There's a surprise with Huws!!
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BlueySwede added 15:15 - Jan 24 Not good. But, let´s move on to the players we do have fit. Surely Bishop deserves his chance? Not overly impressed by Chalobah or Skuse..
5

Suffolkboy added 15:21 - Jan 24 It's a real shame ALL round : but just maybe the doubters will start to recognise that football in this League and at this level is truly physically demanding ! These players will be both physically and mentally shattered ; not being able to play ,let alone actually earn your living is morally draining ,and that coupled to the thought of maybe having a career ruined can be devastating . Both Huws and Adeyemi would be great additions to our playing strength ,so whilst we're anxious to see them on the pitch ,let's be a bit understanding and provide whatever support we can ! COYB

6

beornioblue added 15:28 - Jan 24 definitely Bluey its Bish time surely !!
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Pilgrimblue added 15:45 - Jan 24 Great shame, time for Morris to show PL he's ready
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BildestonBlue added 15:52 - Jan 24 It never rains but it pours 😪!
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ShropshireBluenago09 added 15:57 - Jan 24 Need another experienced midfielder. I think Lambo held off buying one as he thouyHuws would be ok
2

midastouch added 16:02 - Jan 24 Last time Huws turned up for Town was when we beat Newcastle 3-1 at home and the last time Adeyemi put in a shift was the first half against Norwich when he bossed the midfield but he only managed 45 minutes that day and we all know what happened 2nd half and he's never been seen since! To play centre midfield you need to be tough and injury resilient, remember how many games Matt Holland went without missing a game for us for example? Sadly Huws and Adeyemi just don't seem cut out for the rigours of modern football. That might sound harsh as maybe they've just been extremely unlucky. For example, we all remember how Keiron Dyer was plagued by injuries during his career. Nonetheless, a huge chunk of our wage bill has spent the last few seasons in the treatment room. I know all teams have their injury problems but ours does seem well beyond the norm. There must come a stage where we have to cut our losses!

5

midastouch added 16:04 - Jan 24 I know Huws might have played since that game but that's the last time I can remember him having a cracking game for us but realise he might of contributed a bit since then but I can't remember too much prominent 1st team action since he scored that lovely goal against Newcastle. That's the last one that sticks out for me.
1

Northstander_Blue added 16:10 - Jan 24 Cardiff must have been laughing at us when we brought him maybe its time to get rid
1

midastouch added 16:11 - Jan 24 Is Huws one of the highest earners at our club? Mick McCarthy said he only cost £250k rather than £1 million so maybe he got higher wages given the transfer fee was a lot less than originally thought. https://www.eadt.co.uk/sport/mick-mccarthy-on-how-much-ipswich-town-paid-for-emy
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TimmyH added 16:27 - Jan 24 Why am I not surprised with Huws (another sick note) - if we start picking up injuries as we enter the 'crucial' part of the season we might as well beheading to the venues of The Valley, Bescot stadium and Roots Hall next season.
2

invictablue added 16:49 - Jan 24 Ive just found the news about Huws to be almost as irritating as the the pop-up boxes that now keep appearing at the bottom of the screen. Or is it that the cold weather is making me particularly grumpy?
3

IpswichToon added 17:05 - Jan 24 Am I right in thinking that Huws has only managed 45 minutes of first team action since we signed him on a permanent? Such a shame. I remember him being absolutely brilliant in that 3-1 win against Newcastle - and that volley!
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carlisleaway added 17:06 - Jan 24 You just have to look at David McGoldrick playing at Sheffield Utd, last year he was injured......so what is wrong with our training schedule.
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cat added 17:06 - Jan 24 Invictablue - your right about that pop up box, proper does my nut in!
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dirtydingusmagee added 17:07 - Jan 24 said ages ago have doubts about Huws ever being reliable due to long term injury He arrived ,showed he had potential then that was it. Dont think he will be around with us much longer ,unfortately an expensive liability,we cant afford. I hope im proved wrong but also fear for Bishop long term too.What an absolute crap season this has been .
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carlisleaway added 17:18 - Jan 24 How can we get rid of the pop up box
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midastouch added 17:53 - Jan 24 Install browser extensions (add-ons) to stop pop ups. Some i might suggest are Adblock Plus, uBlock Origin and Ghostery. I use them via Firefox but you can also get them via Chrome.
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midastouch added 17:53 - Jan 24 Stops annoying ads in YouTube too!
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carlo88 added 18:26 - Jan 24 Invictablue; A combination of our bunch of sicknotes, looming relegation, Brexit and mid-life crisis (if you're me anyway), would be enough to make anyone seriously grumpy.
2

ITFCsince73 added 18:49 - Jan 24 The quicker Tom and Emyr leave the club the better. 30k a week in wages, for absolutely nothing in return. 2 poor, poor signings from MM to go alongside many others.
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