Neil Lennon fears Hibs captain David Gray could be out for the season after ‘devastating’, ‘heartbreaking’ injury

BY ALAN TEMPLE, Estadio Municipal VRSA – @CCP_Sport

HIBS head coach Neil Lennon fears David Gray’s season could be over after the defender suffered an achilles injury against Willem II.

Hibees skipper Gray lasted just eight minutes of their 3-1 defeat against the Eredivisie outfit in the Algarve.

He fell to the turf clutching his the back of his left leg, with no players in his vicinity and was clearly in immediate distress. The 29-year-old had to be carried from the field.

Gray left the Estadio Municipal VRSA in a protective boot with the aid of crutches and will be sent for a scan next week. Lennon, however, did not hold out much hope for a positive outcome.

“I think it is pretty serious, a real blow,” rued Lennon. “It was his achilles, one of those innocuous things, and David felt something pop. That’s always a really bad sign. It could be devastating for us – and him.

“We will need to wait and see what the prognosis is when we get back to Scotland but it’s heartbreaking.

“He will be in boot to keep it stable for a couple of days. I don’t think there’s much we can really do until we get him home and get him assessed.

“He may need surgery on it and – if that is the case – he’ll probably be out for the season, albeit we don’t know if it’s a rupture or a tear.”

Gray’s agony marred Hibs’ outing against Willem II, currently 15th in the Eredivisie, who ran out 3-1 winners courtesy of a clinical brace by Mo El Hankouri and an Ismael Azzaoui strike, which cancelled out Simon Murray’s opener.