Crewe Alexandra’s hopes of having James Jones back this month have been dealt a major blow after it has been confirmed that the midfielder has suffered a medial knee injury on his return to training.

Jones, a Scotland Under-21 International, suffered the MCL injury when returning to full training on Thursday and the injury is thought to rule him out for between 10-12 weeks.

It is a major blow to Jones and the club as David Artell had hoped to have the former Academy graduate available for selection again in the next four weeks.

Jones had been pencilled in to appear for the club’s U-23s at Hull this evening. George Ray and Ryan Wintle are expected to get some game time as they step up their recovery from long-term injuries.

Jones scored 11 goals last season but hasn’t kicked a ball this season after undergoing hernia surgery in the summer.

Everyone at the Football Club wishes Jonah a speedy recovery.