Gavin Bazunu ruled out for six weeks due to injury

INJURY: Gavin Bazunu’s plans to establish himself as a Championship regular again has been stunted by a thigh injury that sidelines him for six weeks. Pic: Stoke City FC.

Gavin Bazunu’s plans to establish himself as a Championship regular again has been stunted by a thigh injury that sidelines him for six weeks.

Stoke City recruited the Ireland goalkeeper from fellow Championship outfit Southampton after they’d chosen to enlist the services of Bayern Munich stopper Daniel Peretz on loan.

Bazunu’s deal is also a loan but with a potential permanent switch in the summer. He went straight into the starting line-up last Saturday, keeping a clean sheet against QPR, but was absent from the 2-1 defeat to Middlesbrough on Wednesday.

"Gavin Bazunu will be out for six weeks or so,” confirmed Robins to BBC afterwards. “We are paper thin.

"The players are giving everything they can, they are running on fumes. Whatever can go wrong is going wrong.

"We've got to keep giving everything until we can get some bodies back. I cannot believe how people are going down with the injuries they are. It is biting us on the backside.

The recovery timeline means Bazunu will return to take his place in the Ireland squad for the March 26 World Cup playoff in Czechia, acting as understudy to Caoimhín Kelleher.