Nelson Oliveira will not figure in the squad that Daniel Farke takes to Bolton for Saturday’s match as he continues to try to shake off a series of niggling injuries that have kept him side lined.
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The Portuguese international has flown to Portugal for medical and dental help as he looks to get to the bottom of the problems that are denying us our number one striker.
Daniel Farke spoke to the media on Friday lunchtime and also spoke to canaries.co.uk
“Nelson Oliveira is not available,” Farke said. “I hope we can use the international break to get him back on course.
“He`s in Portugal having some meetings with dentists and doctors to try and sort it out. Hopefully we can get it sorted and have him back at 100% after the international break.”
In better news, Yanic Wildschut is available again after missing the Wolves match for personal reasons. Yanic’s direct play was missed on Tuesday night and a starting berth could well be on the cards against the Trotters.
Angus Gunn and James Maddison both received England U21 call ups this week and while Angus is a regular squad member, it’s a first for Maddison who has become the main man for Norwich this season.
“To be honest I`ve thought that James Maddison needs a break,” Farke said.
“It`s his first season in the Championship and he`s played a lot of minutes. He`s so important, but you can see he`s a little tired. But he has a brilliant attitude, and he can create special moments even if he`s tired.
“We have to find the right balance with his load, but I don`t think it`ll be a problem to have him on the pitch tomorrow.”
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Farke is alive to the problem of relying on Madders too much and I also thought that he looked a bit jaded against Wolves. Despite that though, he was still our best player.
Steven Naismith has continued to train with the first team this week but won’t be risked as he continues the road back from injury. Farke says that after the international break he should be available again, adding numbers to the squad.
Alex Tettey is progressing well but won’t be back until a couple of weeks after the break, during which, hopefully, Alex Pritchard should return to first team training.
A Norwich side with Oliveira, Pritchard, Tettey and even Naismith back in it, will be much better placed to challenge the top six.
OTBC