David Brooks suffers injury setback in bid to play for Wales at World Cup as Davies pulls out of Nations League matches
DAVID BROOKS has suffered an injury setback in his courageous bid to play at the World Cup.
The Wales star, 25, made a comeback from cancer treatment by playing for Bournemouth’s Under-21s last month.
But the midfielder, who revealed he was cancer-free in May after being diagnosed with stage two Hodgkin lymphoma, tweaked a hamstring on his return against Brentford B.
Wales will play a waiting game to see if Brooks recovers but his hopes of making the Qatar squad are fading.
Wales boss Robert Page said: “We have to be sympathetic with him and give him as much opportunity to fully recover and be a part of the World Cup squad.
“We are in constant contact. Let’s wait and see what happens between now and then.
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“There’s a lot of minutes to be played and a lot of games to play.”
Cherries’ interim boss Gary O’Neil confirmed: “David suffered a slight setback in the development squad game.
“He had some pain in his hamstring.
“It’s not unusual for any player who has been off the grass long-term.
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“I’m not surprised it’s happened but I’m disappointed for him.”
Wales are also reeling from Ben Davies picking up a knee injury.
The Tottenham defender, 29, is believed to have sustained a hairline fracture to the bone just underneath his knee.
It saw him miss Spurs’ 6-2 home win over Leicester on Saturday and rules him out of Wales’ Nations League clashes with Belgium and Poland next week.
Boss Antonio Conte revealed Davies played with the problem during Tuesday’s 2-0 defeat against Sporting Lisbon.
The Italian told Sky Sports: “He had an injury in his knee in the game against Sporting Lisbon and he played with this injury.
“(It’s) not a serious injury, I think after the international break because with the national team he is not available.
“But I think after the international break he will be available for us.”
Davies now faces a race to be fit in time for the North London derby at Arsenal on October 1.