Fraizer Campbell may miss the rest of season
Aug 31 2010 by Luke Edwards, The Journal
FRAIZER Campbell could be out for the rest of the season after suffering cruciate ligament damage in Sunderland’s victory over Manchester City.
That depressing news has increased the urgency surrounding the Black Cats’ attempt to sign Ghana international Asamoah Gyan from Rennes before today’s 6pm transfer deadline, with Sunderland boss Steve Bruce making no attempt to hide his desperation for the deal to go through.
Gyan arrived in the North East last night to discuss personal terms with the Black Cats, while negotiations have progressed over the last 24 hours regarding the agreement of a fee with the French club.
Campbell was sent to hospital for a scan yesterday after Sunderland’s medical staff feared the worst in the aftermath of the 1-0 win over City, and there is a real chance the striker could miss the rest of the season.
That would leave Bruce horribly short of strikers and worryingly over-reliant on the goals of Darren Bent, who has already scored four time this season.
Bent has continued to be prolific in a red and white shirt, but the England international admits he will need some help over the season, particularly after Kenwyne Jones left for Stoke City.
He said: “All the players are trying to chip in and get goals. I’m lucky that they’re going in for me and that’s great, but I can understand when people say that’s a little bit of a concern as well. People will say, ‘imagine what might happen if I get an injury or drop in form’, and yes those things can happen.
“But we’ve also got some fantastic players who can get goals and hopefully they’ll start chipping in soon.”
Bent will link up with the England squad this week a relieved man after Sunderland’s rousing win over Manchester City. It was Bent’s injury-time winner which secured all three
points, although it was far from a convincing spot kick which squeezed under the body of City goalkeeper Joe Hart.
But it was the satisfaction of securing Sunderland’s first Premier League win of the season against one of the sides expected to compete for the title, meant Bent was able to leave for international duty in good spirits.
Although Sunderland have lost just once this term, Bent conceded they would have been under some early pressure if they had failed to pick up a win at the weekend, with tough games against Arsenal and Liverpool to come soon.
