Linfield’s title hopes suffer a major blow as key player ruled out for rest of season
Chris Shields was injured in the win over Cliftonville
Linfield’s hopes of wrestling the Gibson Cup away from Larne have been dealt a huge blow with influential Chris Shields ruled out for the remainder of the campaign.
The 33-year-old midfielder limped away from the midweek win at Cliftonville with a knee injury and, after his team’s 2-0 victory over Ballymena United on Saturday, Healy revealed the midfielder’s season is over.
“Shieldsie is going to be a huge loss for us,” admitted the former Northern Ireland international striker. “He’s a big player for us on the pitch and he’s a big player for us in and around the dressing room.
“It’s not the news we wanted. He’s not long back after a spell out due to injury. It’s depressing for Shieldsie... and it’s depressing for the club because he’s such a huge player for us.
“The role he plays in our team, I think he’s the best in the League at that. It’s just another blow because we’ve had so much bad luck in terms of the players we’ve been missing.”
“Shields is the latest blow following on from Stephen) Fallon, (Robbie) McDaid, (Jordan) Stewart, along with Ben Hall and (Chris) McKee at different times and Joel Cooper, who hasn’t really played after a challenge he sustained on Boxing Day.”
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