Wolves Face Injury Setbacks with Trippier and Mosquera

Wolves have been dealt an early-season blow with confirmation that Kieran Trippier suffered a knee ligament injury on his league debut for the club.

The 35-year-old right-back, who joined on a free transfer in June, damaged the medial collateral ligament in his left knee during Friday’s 2-2 draw with Blackburn Rovers. The club expect him to be out for “a number of weeks”, cutting short his introduction just as he was bedding into Gary O’Neil’s side.

The setback leaves Wolves suddenly light in defence. Trippier was signed to add experience and composure, but he now joins Yerson Mosquera in the treatment room after a bruising meeting with Blackburn.

Mosquera, 25, also came off worse from that game, sustaining a slight tear in his ankle ligaments. He is expected to miss several weeks, robbing Wolves of another option at the back at a time when fixtures are already starting to stack up.

There is at least some encouragement elsewhere.

Director of performance Phil Hayward delivered a more upbeat bulletin on winger Rafiki Said, who endured a nightmare start to life at Molineux when he suffered a high-grade MCL injury in pre-season. The 26-year-old, a summer signing, picked up the damage in a friendly against Maidenhead United last month, only 11 days after joining the club.

“Rafiki’s been working very hard in the gym for the last few weeks with his brace on. He’s now out of the brace and the most recent scan looks great, so he’s heading, certainly, in the right direction,” Hayward said, outlining a rare positive on an otherwise difficult injury list.

Hayward also confirmed that goalkeeper Sam Johnstone is around a week away from full fitness, offering Wolves a timely boost between the posts. Haiti international midfielder Jean-Ricner Bellegarde is expected to be another couple of weeks away from rejoining first-team training.

Wolves now face the early challenge of holding their nerve and their shape while key players filter back, one scan and one session at a time.