Shrimpers squad shocks for Stanley: Bilel definitely out, Barker may be fit!

Last updated : 12 August 2011 By exiledessexboy

Mohsni: Late header

Bilel Mohsni: Will not travel to the Crown Ground Saturday afternoon

That tough trip to Accrington Stanley at the weekend is getting tougher by the hour.

The club have announced that centre-back come forward come goalkeeper if Luggy asked him, the one and only Bilel Mohsni, will not travel with the squad to the Lancashire based side as he need to be rested after the fasting needed for the Muslim festival of Ramadan, for more on that see the article below, but with the current question marks against the fitness of two of the Southend central defence this is a real blow.

Blues boss Paul Sturrock told www.southendunited.co.uk: "Bilel obviously can't eat at the times we'd expect at the moment. I just feel playing three times in such a short space of time is too much at the moment and it won't benefit the team. You have to respect his religion and we've spoken and Bilel is fine with things. We will obviously assess the situation constantly and bring him back in as when we feel it's right."

Oh dear, with Mark Phillips limping off at half-time against Orient on Tuesday, no update here, but Sturrock accepts that it doesn't seem possible that the former Brentford skipper can play more than three or four games in a row without breaking down so the odds are not good, but hang on, skipper Chris Barker who we were told could be out for two to three weeks, could be back!

After a 'slight groin strain', it wasn't so slight in the week, he faces a fitness test to see if he can travel today.

Still, with poor old Graham Coughlan knackered after his extra-time expliots a few days ago Luke Prosser moving along the line to central defence and Peter Gilbert in at left-back could be on, blimey, lucky we've got a bigger squad this time around!

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