Its no coincidence that in our last 3 games we havnt performed to our best. Its a shame he is prone to at least three niggling injuries per season - could be the difference between 4th and being an also-ran.

Is it boot design, or harder pitches or changes to training regimes that's causing loads of foot injuries these days?

A few years ago, no-one had even heard of a metatarsal, now every Tom Dick or Harry gets a foot injury...

SO much for he is out of the season....or about to retire... or been abducted by aliens!

Craig Johnston

He designed the Predator boot I think...the one that had loads of lumps of rumbber all over it so they looked like truck tires

I still reckon he ain't right with that knee and the amount of rest he needs. He has been carrying it for almost 2 years now - surgery must not be an option or he would surely have had it and he is being run as lightly as we can to elongate his career.

I remain certain Ledders will not last till his 30th birthday - as ever, I hope my speculation is wrong.

I'd love to see a 'fierce' performance, or three, from the winners of this 'competition'? Too much to ask?
Or, is there a method of picking the team i'm missing....cards? Rock, paper, scissors, perhaps?

Get well soon Ledley, we need you back for the games against those *****s.

Hmmm. I don't like the sound of this. It was supposed to be a one week "sore foot". Now, a month later, it is "returning to training and see how it goes". That and the fact he has had this injury before suggests to me he has a recurring problem with his foot that needs fixing. Combine it with his knee and I am beginning to come around to the idea of signing a real quality Centre Half as back up. Ledley is the best, but cannot play 60 games a season. It was losing him last year that cost us the CL spot as much as any lasagne.

You could be right. Signing a centre back is quite important if his fitness is in real doubt which it very well may be. If we need to replace him for more than the occasional spell of games it is really important that we get someone who is comfortable distributing the ball from the back and has a bit of pace.

Interestingly, I was told the day before the first game he missed (whichever one it was, I forget now) that he had BROKEN his foot and would be out for 6 weeks. I didn't post it here, because the reports and Jol's comments the next day were suggesting it wasn't that serious. But I'm beginning to wonder if maybe it was a small fracture or something.

They did the same thing with JJ's injury. It was supposed to be a calf strain originally. But I saw him at the Lane a week after his injury and he told me he had a hairline fracture in his foot. It was in a magic boot as well, so I believe him. It definitely wasn't his calf

Ive been saying it for ages, we dont need any more youngsters yet, right now we need to sign an experienced CB because with ledders out our season could fold very quickly as we come up against better teams.
When the season ends we Must send Ledders under the knife to sort out his Knee once and for all otherwise he will be missing too many vital games and will inevertably end up cutting his career short.
Was on about those pitches with fibers woven in to em, aparently it stops the boots making divots in the surface, surely if you do that then the foot, ankle, knee will take the strain instead of the ground giving underneath you?

I have always said this and wil say it again ! We need Upson or Davies. A centre Back is priority !!! Comoli and Jol go for it !