Southampton manager Ronald Koeman has suggested that Jay Rodriguez will not play this season due to a knee injury that has been troubling him since April last year.
The 25-year-old was tipped to be included in the England World Cup squad when he suffered the injury blow towards the end of last season, and it is unclear when he will be making his comeback.
This week, Koeman revealed that the club expected Rodriguez to be back on the field at the start of the year, but the Dutchman has claimed that the the forward is "still not close".
"Still he is not very close to be part of the training session and I don't know, really I don't know," the Daily Echo quotes Koeman as saying.
"We don't press the player. The most important is the health of the player and it will be a pity if he is not playing one game this season, most of all for the player by himself."
Meanwhile, Southampton are preparing for tonight's clash against Crystal Palace at St Mary's.
Danielle Joynson
