Blackpool's injury state of play ahead of Middlesbrough test as Keshi Anderson suffers another cruel setback

The midfielder returned to training last week for the first time since November, having not featured since the game against Luton Town in November.

That brief cameo against the Hatters continues to be the only match action Anderson has enjoyed this season.

The 27-year-old’s appearance off the bench came on his return from a thigh injury, a setback that occurred just after he had recovered from a quad complaint he suffered on the eve of the 2022/23 season.

Having fought his way back into training, Anderson has now picked up another knock to set him back once again.

“Keshi came back and he’s got another knock unfortunately. He’s strained his thigh,” McCarthy said ahead of this weekend’s trip to Middlesbrough.

“How badly? I’m not going to start guessing, but hopefully it’s not too long.

“He trained with us for two or three days and he was really impressive, so it’s sad he’s had another setback.”

Elsewhere, Jordan Gabriel and Liam Bridcutt have trained this week, but Kevin Stewart and Lewis Fiorini both remain sidelined.

James Husband will miss the trip to the Riverside as a result of the hamstring injury he suffered during the second-half of last weekend’s FA Cup tie against Southampton.

There’s better news regarding Gary Madine, who was taken off Blackpool’s bench against the Saints at the last minute after complaining of a sore back.

“Gary is fine, he’s okay. He’s trained,” McCarthy said.

“James Husband is not available though, he’s got a hamstring strain. Thankfully it’s not a long one, but I can’t tell you how long he will be out for.

“Jordan Gabriel is training, Brids trained today. They’re not ready to play though because they’ve been out a long while.

“The others are pretty much the same. There’s nobody available for Saturday, that’s for sure.

“But we’ve got seven games coming up in 23 or 24 days, so we’re going to need everyone we can so if some of those can get back out on the grass and recover, it would be a huge help.”