Cambridge United loanee Josh Stokes could return from knee injury to face Wigan Athletic in the FA Cup after scoring for Bristol City Under-21s
There is a ‘chance’ that Josh Stokes could make his return from injury when Cambridge United play host to Wigan Athletic in the second round of the FA Cup on Saturday afternoon.
The attacking midfielder, who is on loan with the U’s from Bristol City, has been sidelined since the middle of September with a knee problem.
However, Stokes stepped up his recovery on Monday night when he featured for his parent club’s Under-21s in the Premier League Cup against Norwich City. The 20-year-old came off the bench to play the entirety of the second half and scored from the penalty spot.
And Cambridge head coach Garry Monk now has to decide if Stokes is ready to be included in the squad that faces the Latics this weekend.
“Because of the game schedule here and the training schedule, part of the plan was to try and get him some minutes in a game,” said Monk. “Bristol helped us out with that side of it where he managed to get some minutes on the pitch.
“It’s just a case of building him back up and seeing where he is at on a daily basis. Whether he’s ready to be involved Saturday or next week, we’ll have to see.
“He’s got a chance for this weekend but we’ll have to keep a close eye on him and see where he’s at. He’s got a bit of work to do to get to some sort of fitness, but being back in training will be helpful for that.”
Opponents Wigan lost on their previous visit to the Cledara Abbey Stadium just six weeks ago when Elias Kachunga and a Sam TIckle own goal secured Cambridge a first League One victory of the season.
Monk’s men have gone on to lose just one of their eight fixtures in all competitions since then, but he does not expect that encounter to have any impact on how Saturday’s tie plays out.
He added: “We approached that game at that time and it (the win) was much needed. That was the start – in terms of results – of turning things around.
“It was a couple of months ago now though and things are different. It’s a different period of the season and teams are doing different things, and playing differently.
“We’ll concentrate on ourselves because it’s an important game for us for a number of reasons. We’ve got to continue what we’re doing and keep trying to improve what we’re doing.
“We want to try to get through to the next round of the cup – that’s win the big draws come in.”
Dan Nlundulu is set to return to the United squad after missing Tuesday night’s 1-1 draw against his parent club Bolton Wanderers. Connor O’Riordan, meanwhile, will be absent owing to the fact that his parent club Blackburn Rovers have not given permission for him to play in the FA Cup as part of his loan deal.
