Derek McInnes has concern for Rutkiewicz after injury

Published on Friday 11 December 2009 22:08

ST JOHNSTONE manager Derek McInnes admits Kevin Rutkiewicz will find it "mentally hard" to deal with his second knee injury of the season which is set to keep him out for another three months.

The McDiarmid Park captain caught his studs in the turf at training on Thursday morning and a scan later revealed a partial tear of the medial ligament. Rutkiewicz has only played six games this season after recovering from an injury to the same knee picked up 23 minutes into a friendly win over Cowdenbeath in July.

McInnes was hit with another blow ahead of the trip to Rangers in the Clydesdale Bank Premier League with the news striker Collin Samuel will undergo an exploratory operation to establish the damage to a knee injury picked up last week against Kilmarnock.

"I'm gutted for both lads, especially Kevin who will be out for longer and who worked so hard to get back from the injury in pre-season," said McInnes.

"It was towards the end of the training session and there was nobody near him but when he went down in pain we knew it was serious. It is the same knee Kevin injured in the pre-season game at Cowdenbeath but the tear is not in the same place and is not as big a tear as the original one. His knee might have been weakened from the first injury but nevertheless we are looking at two to three months.

"It's a huge blow for Kevin, who will find it hard mentally to deal with this so soon after coming back. It will be difficult for him, but he's a big character who played his part with pride in getting us up to the SPL. That's the ups and downs of being a footballer, but we will try to keep him going.

"With Collin, we will need to see what is found when he is examined. But no players are more important than any others and someone else will get an opportunity against Rangers."

McInnes will take no comfort from Rangers' midweek Champions League defeat against Sevilla in Spain which emphasised the gap between the Ibrox club and the top teams in Europe.

"I think Rangers can take some positives from the game in midweek," the former Ibrox midfielder said.

"And while it was hard work for them, they are used to playing in midweek and then again on Saturday. Rangers are strong at home and don't lose too many games there. But we will go to Ibrox with good heart and try and win the game.

"A point would be a positive result but it would be dangerous to go into the game with that mindset. We need to go with a belief and be brave enough to take the ball. If we can do that then I'm confident it will serve us well."

Defender Stuart McCaffrey is also a doubt with a groin strain.