PRESTON NORTH END have confirmed that Sean Maguire will be sidelined until early in 2019 after he was injured while on international duty with the Republic of Ireland.
Having been introduced as a second-half substitute in last week’s friendly against Northern Ireland, Maguire sustained a hamstring injury and was withdrawn 13 minutes later.
The striker has endured a series of similar problems over the last 14 months. He missed a sizeable chunk of last season and has played just six games for his club in this campaign.
“I don’t think we will see him until January unfortunately, but it does provide an opportunity for the other forwards,” Preston boss Alex Neil said of Maguire today ahead of his side’s Championship clash with Blackburn Rovers.
Maguire only made his first appearance of the season last month. He started in Preston’s games against Ipswich Town and Bristol City before linking up with the Ireland squad.
Neil suggested that the 24-year-old could then have done with a break, stating that it was “not ideal” for him to be on international duty so soon after returning from a long lay-off.
“It’s really disappointing for Sean. We feel as though we have managed him very well. That week where he would have had some down-time he has had to go on international duty, so naturally it’s disappointing,” said Neil.
“Because he had played most of the game for us at Bristol, we couldn’t really stipulate [to Ireland] too much in terms of his training this time around.”
Maguire joined Preston from Cork City in the summer of 2017. The Kilkenny native has won four senior caps for Ireland, having made his debut against Moldova in October of last year.
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