Bristol Rovers captain Paul Coutts may not return to action until the new year, Joey Barton has revealed, after the midfielder learned the scale of his ankle injury.
Coutts is on crutches and wearing a protective boot after rolling his ankle in training at The Quarters last month, missing Rovers' past three games. The Gas had hoped the 34-year-old would be able to return within around a month, but it could take twice as long after scans showed it to be a tendon injury.
The former Sheffield United and Preston North End midfielder, who has played 11 times for the Gas this season, laying on two assists, is recovering at home with his family in Aberdeen. With a return to training to rebuild his fitness taking into account, Barton admitted it is possible that the Scot may have played his final game of 2022.
