John Mousinho shares Colby Bishop update as Portsmouth ace recuperates from heart surgery
John Mousinho says Portsmouth striker Colby Bishop is recuperating well after major heart surgery.
The Blues boss has explained that there are limited prior cases the club can study in relation to a timescale on Bishop’s recovery, which complicates matters.
Bishop broke the 20-goal barrier in each of his past two seasons at Fratton Park, but was struck down on the eve of the Championship campaign with the news he would have to undergo a significant heart operation after an issue flared up in routine medical checks.
Mousinho told BBC Radio Solent’s Andy Moon [12 September]: “We don’t have a timescale on Colby as of yet – he isn’t back training as he only had heart surgery five weeks ago. If he was back in training then we would’ve looked to include him in the [25-man] squad.
“It’s a difficult one with Colby as it’s not like other injuries where there are thousands of examples, whereas here there are only one or two. We’ve looked at everything we’ve got and listened to advice, and we’re making decisions based on all of that.
“Obviously, it was a difficult decision [to exclude Bishop from the 25-man squad], but we need players who we can rely on to be available in the short-term.”
Portsmouth monitor Colby Bishop daily
Portsmouth are in a position where they have had to be ruthless with their squad decisions, based on the fact there are currently more than 25 first-teamers on the books.
With Bishop absent for an uncertain amount of time, the safest option for the squad’s benefit was to omit the prolific striker, meaning he would be unable to play until at least January even if he were to return to fitness within that timeframe.
Despite Bishop’s clear frustration at the heart issue, the club are treating the situation with the required care and kid gloves to enable a healthy and safe return.
The 27-year-old is eager to get back out onto the pitch and try his hand at Championship football, so the issue could not have been worse timed – but for a young man who has recently started a young family, the current procedure from Portsmouth is the correct one.
And rest assured, if and when Bishop does return to Fratton Park, expect noise – and probably goals.
In other Portsmouth news, the club have found themselves at the centre of this week’s ‘Barclaysmen’ trend.
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