Rhian Brewster out to continue quick start as injured duo move closer to return

February 22, 2020
Joanna Durkan

Rhian Brewster is out to notch another goal for Swansea as Ovie Ejaria looks to throw a spanner into the works at the top of the Championship.

Liverpool’s loanees are back in action on the weekend, with Brewster aiming to continue his fast start at Swansea with his fourth goal of the season.

The 19-year-old has quickly settled into life in the Championship and had looked to have scored the match-winning goal last time out from the bench in a thrilling 4-4 draw at Hull.

And now Brewster will be looking to return to the starting lineup when the Swans host Huddersfield on Saturday in search of breaking the club’s run of five games without a win.

The Terriers have the fifth-worst defensive record in the division having conceded 52 goals in 33 games and with just seven clean sheets in total, numbers which will have no doubt caught Brewster’s attention as he aims to net his fourth goal in eight appearances.

Elsewhere in the Championship, Ejaria will be looking to use his last outing at Sheffield Wednesday, where he delivered a sumptuous defence-splitting assist, as a springboard against automatic promotion hopefuls Leeds United.

The midfielder’s assist was his first goal involvement in seven games and a chance to test himself against Marcelo Bielsa’s side awaits.

Leeds have been hot and cold since the start of the festive period and have shut out the opposition just once in their last 12 games, and having proven to be susceptible at the back there is a window of opportunity for Ejaria and Reading on Saturday afternoon.

And after a run of nine Premier League appearances without contributing to the scoreboard, Harry Wilson is set to be handed another opportunity when Bournemouth meet Burnley.

The Cherries sit just two points above the drop zone and with clashes against Liverpool and Chelsea to follow back-to-back, taking points off 11th-placed Burnley could be vital.

Across in Germany, Nat Phillips is expected to start his sixth successive game at the heart of defence since he returned to Stuttgart following a brief stint back at Liverpool in January.

The 22-year-old has been integral to his side keeping three clean sheets in their last four 2. Bundesliga games, where another test in the form of sixth-placed Jahn Regensburg awaits on Saturday.

Meanwhile, on the injury front, both Ben Woodburn (Oxford) and Kamil Grabara (Huddersfield) have both received promising news on their respective returns from injury.

Woodburn was hit with his second broken foot of the season just prior to Christmas, having previously suffered from the same injury on the opposite foot – ensuring he has yet to play for the League One side since October.

And manager Karl Robinson has now signposted Oxford’s game against Southend on February 29 as a date for his return.

“He started running last Thursday, so he’ll have done about 14 days of pre-season effectively. Then he needs games,” he said.

Robinson conceded “it’s more of a necessity that we get him back” as he has limited options in his squad, but after a lengthy absence he was quick to temper expectations for the 20-year-old who notched one goal and four assists in 11 league games prior to his injury.

Grabara, on the other hand, has been out of action since late January having suffered a nasty head collision which led to a concussion and a bleed on the brain.

The young goalkeeper was ruled out for a minimum of 28 days due to concussion protocols and only last week returned to the training ground for specific, targeted work.

“He is back on the grass and involved in sessions now, so the day by day process will continue,” Huddersfield boss Danny Cowley explained.

“If everything runs smoothly it’s a six-day process but, often, it can be a little bit longer than that. It is a daily thing, so he has to keep passing the next stage in that protocol.”

Grabara played in all but one of the Terriers’ 29 Championship games prior to his injury and while he became the undisputed first choice, the emergency signing of Jonas Lossl has negated any need to rush his return from a serious injury.