Lowery to play some part against Blues later today.

Alex midfielder Tom Lowery is expected to get some minutes under his belt for the club’s Under-23 away at Birmingham City this afternoon.

The Under-23 fixture will be played behind closed doors due to strict Covid-19 guidelines.

Lowery last featured at first team level back in late January before he needed surgery for his hernia injury. He had produced his most productive season to date, scoring five goals from his 36 appearances in all competitions.

David Artell told crewealex.net: “Tom will play some minutes and we will see how he gets on. I have told the physio and sports science team that we are in no rush to get the injured players back.

“We have only just started the season and there is a long way to go. We don’t want them dipping in and out and them having a stop/start season.

“It is better that they get a pre-season now and they will really benefit from that.”