Ireland U21 star Egan ruled out for nine months

Republic of Ireland U21 international central defender John Egan is set to miss the rest of the season after breaking his leg while playing for Bradford City against Plymouth on Tuesday.

Egan, who was 20 early this month, broke both the tibia and fibula in his right leg and is due to have surgery on Saturday to pin the breaks. He is likely to be out for up to nine months. Egan, son of Kerry GAA legend John, joined Bradford on loan from Sunderland earlier this month. He was injured after falling awkwardly in the 13th minute of Bradford’s 1-0 win.

“The minute he landed on the ground, we could all unfortunately see how bad the injury was by his reaction and the reactions of the players around him,” said Bradford’s assistant manager, Steve Parkin.

“It is heartbreaking because he’s a young lad who’s come into the building only recently and done ever so well. He has been an outstanding young man — on and off the field — and he has been excellent in all of the games he’s played for us.

“The main thing to focus on now regarding John, however, is that he gets all the right treatment he needs and that he recovers from this injury as soon as possible. We’ll be doing our bit as a football club to try and help him over these next few days.”