Dundee United manager Csaba Laszlo has called the cruciate ligament damage suffered by Fraser Fyvie an “injury disaster.”
The Tangerines received the worst possible news at the worst possible time, with confirmation that Fyvie’s season is over arriving on the eve of their massive match against St Mirren in Paisley.
Laszlo did nothing at all to hide his devastation at hearing his team will have to play the remainder of their Championship campaign without the 24-year-old former Hibs, Aberdeen and Wigan man.
Fyvie fell to the floor clutching his knee in agony after challenging Livingston player Steven Boyd during Saturday’s 3-0 win at Tannadice and it looked a bad one at the time, with the player having to be carried down the tunnel.
A scan was done earlier this week and the results arrived at the club yesterday, ensuring it was a downbeat Laszlo who addressed the media.
The Tannadice boss, though, was also defiant and wants the rest of his squad to go on and lift the title so that the club can bring Fyvie back as a Premierhsip player next season.
Laszlo said: “I am very unhappy about the situation with Fraser Fyvie.
“Unfortunately, it looks not so good for him.
“It is the cruciate and it is an injury disaster.
“At the moment we have just had the scan results back.
“We are looking to get the best doctors to do the surgery.
“He has experience with this kind of injury and he will need a minimum of six months to recover from it.
“I think that we have lost a very important player, both on the pitch and in the dressing room.
“He has been growing more and more into the games, and has shown very good performances this season.
“So it is sad for everyone that we have lost him.
“I have just had a chat of more than 40 minutes with Fraser just now after hearing the bad scan result.
“He is a very strong guy and he told me: ‘Gaffer, I was prepared for the worst-case scenario.
“He knows now that he has to fight back.
“Surgery will be very important but so will the rehabilitation.
“I have also talked to our chairman (Stephen Thompson) and he told me that we will do everything possible to bring him back.”
The timing is terrible, coming a day before the Buddies clash, but Laszlo hopes the players will get extra motivation because of what has happened to their teammate.
The Hungarian added: “This is what I have been saying to the players.
“Look, God has given you a very bad gift for Christmas but now He can also give you a fantastic gift by having Fraser back on the pitch in the Premiership next season in a Dundee United strip.
“This is what we can do and this is what we have to do. The rest of the team are keen to do this.
“I said also that I am a person who believes in God and we should be positive.
“In my opinion, Fraser was one of the country’s best and most talented young players.
“He went down to England too early, in my opinion.
“He also had a very bad injury and did not find his place.
“He then came back to Scotland and he was getting back to his best.
“Now, we all need to stand behind him, support him and recognise that he is our friend.”
With Fyvie now out for the long term, United will give captain Willo Flood an extremely warm welcome when he returns from a shoulder injury tonight, while Stewart Murdoch may have to wait until next week’s home game against Brechin to make his comeback.
Laszlo said: “We have Willo back and it is not a big secret that he will play. We are happy to have our captain back.”
After the Fyvie bombshell, the match seemed of secondary importance but, of course, there is a heck of a lot riding on it, with United two points behind the Buddies with a game in hand.
“It is a fixture that is important because it is first against second,” said Laszlo.
“After the match, I hope the two teams have changed position!
“For me, it is important to win every game and I don’t make see any difference between Brechin, Livingston or St Mirren.
“We are all in the same league and there is not too much difference between all the teams.
“I told my players that they will have to treat it normally.
“OK, the fans are keen to see us go back to the top and we are keen to do so.
“There is the same pressure on both teams, I think.
“Last time, St Mirren came back against Queen of the South and scored three goals.
“We also scored three goals in our match against Livingston so both teams will be confident.
“I was happy to see how we played football in that last match then we are capable of winning against anybody in our league.
“Personally, the most pressure on me is to keep my players fit and this injury disaster has pushed my thoughts in another direction at the moment.
“Don’t think, though, that we are not thinking about St Mirren because we are prepared physically and mentally.
“The players know what they have to do.”
