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Coyle feels for Gardner

Image: Ricardo Gardner: Owen Coyle insists midfielder's Bolton future has been decided

Bolton Wanderers manager Owen Coyle feels for injured Ricardo Gardner and is not ruling him out of playing again for the club.

Bolton boss insists midfielder's future is not decided

Bolton Wanderers manager Owen Coyle feels for injured Ricardo Gardner and is not ruling him out of playing again for the club. The club's long-serving midfielder is set for an extended period on the sidelines due to a knee problem. Coyle thinks the Jamaican will be out for a 'long time', however, he insists his future at the Reebok Stadium is not a forgone conclusion. Gardner has been with Bolton since 1998 and Coyle has confirmed the club will review his situation towards the end of the season.

Frustrating

"I don't think it is cut and dried, but it is certainly looking as if it will be a long time," explained Coyle of Gardner's injury. "It is frustrating because he is such a top lad and an outstanding player. He really has been unlucky and hampered by injuries, certainly in my tenure. "We got him back and he was playing ever so well, and then he got sent off in the game at Swansea (in October). From that, he had taken a knock and it just seemed to snowball from there. Coyle added: "Ricardo is one of a number of players who will be out of contract and he comes under the same jurisdiction as anyone else. "He was out of contract last summer and we gave him the extra year, so it has been frustrating for him. It is something that we will look at towards the end of the season."

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