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Cook hoping for good news from surgeon – weekend news
Cook hoping for good news from surgeon – weekend news
Sunday, 26th Jul 2009 22:10

Lee Cook’s injury saga reaches a new chapter this week with the left winger due to meet with his surgeon on Tuesday and discuss a possible return to training.

It is hard not to feel sorry for Cook who was on top of the world two years ago having just scooped the QPR Player of the Year award and secured a £2.5m move to Premiership side Fulham. Sadly towards the end of that spell with QPR he picked up a knee injury which has blighted his career ever since. He failed to appear once for Fulham in 2007/08 and after returning to QPR 12 months ago endured a stop start campaign last term with various knocks and bumps ruling him out for little clusters of games throughout the season. One of the pieces of ‘confidential information’ Paulo Sousa was dismissed for revealing related to Cook’s continuing injury problems.

It was reported earlier this summer in the tabloid press earlier this summer that Cook had undergone more knee surgery and would be out for four months but there was no official word from the club until he was ruled out of the first friendly of the summer at Aldershot. It has now been confirmed that Cook will miss all of pre-season and the start of the new campaign – however he may be able to return to light training this week if his surgeon gives him the thumbs up on Tuesday.

Cook told the Ealing Gazette: “I'm hoping to get the all-clear to start rehabilitation on Tuesday with gym work, bikes, weights and running, so it is going to be a very important day for me. It's frustrating because it's a big time of the season and so important especially with the new manager coming in. Everyone's keen to impress and what you do now sets you up for the season. It has hit me hard missing out so far. You can see everyone buzzing on the training ground and the tempo is frightening. And I'm really sorry to have missed out on the tour because there is so much team-bonding on trips like that. It couldn't have been worse timing.

“I know the new season will come too soon for me, but hopefully it won't be too long before I'm playing again if I get the all-clear this week. I'm hoping you'll see Lee Cook back, doing what he does best. This is going to be a big season for me. It was a bit stop-start last year and the knee was giving me gyp throughout the season, but hopefully this has sorted out the knee once and for all. I'm only 26 and I've still got a lot to do. You didn't see much of the old Lee Cook last year, but Rangers fans will see the best of me again.”

One man who is currently fit and ready to go for the new season is Adel Taarabt, who completed his loan move from Spurs at the end of last week and made his debut at Oxford on Friday night. The Moroccan international told Mountakhab.net: “I would’ve liked to play in Spain for both myself and the Moroccan public who would’ve been happy to see my play in La Liga, but I’m satisfied on all levels especially since the sporting challenge is up to my ambitions. My aim for next season is to become more decisive in front of goal. I’ve played in a number of positions, I have good conduct and protection of the ball. I am decisive in the game with the ball, now I have to score more. I’ve fixed an objective of 15 goals for next season.”

Taarabt has also been speaking to QPR World saying: “I’m very pleased to be back here. I played a few months last year and it was a very good experience for me. When you love football you have to play every week and I really enjoyed it because at Tottenham I don’t have this chance. I had a lot of opportunities to go to Spain, Italy or France but Tottenham wanted me to stay in England and when they told me this I said it would be better for me to go back to QPR. The fans love me already, I know all the players, only the manager has changed but they tell me he is a very good manager and wants to play good football. The fans of QPR have been very good with me, I think they the way how I play and I will still do this and maybe do more, hopefully score more goals for them.”

In former QPR news Giles Coke has completed his move from Northampton to Motherwell, Richard Graham has signed for Grays after training in pre-season with Barnet, Paul Furlong scored for the Bees as they continued Charlton’s abysmal pre-season with a 2-0 win at Underhill, Jake Cole also played and kept a clean sheet. Nottingham Forest, Dexter Blackstock and Lee Camp now in tow, were beaten 2-1 at new media darling club Notts County on Saturday.

Elsewhere in the Championship this weekend Newcastle’s farcical pre-season deepened on Saturday when a side containing Martins, Smith, Nolan, Barton, Collucini and others were hammered 6-1 at League One side Leyton Orient. Former QPR man Jimmy Smith opened the scoring for the O’s. Ipswich’s Pablo Counago has turned down a move to Swansea despite the clubs agreeing a fee, Roy Keane has told the player he must now show willingness to fight for his place at Portman Road. Ipswich have completed the signing of Colin Healy for £70k from Cork City.

Photo: Action Images



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