Simon Grayson on why Matty Virtue was missing for Blackpool's pre-season friendly

Simon Grayson revealed he opted to leave Matty Virtue out of Blackpool's pre-season friendly at Altrincham as a precuation.
By Matt Scrafton
Published 20th Jul 2019, 22:43 BST
Virtue suffered the knock in Tuesday night's friendly at AFC FyldeVirtue suffered the knock in Tuesday night's friendly at AFC Fylde
Virtue suffered the knock in Tuesday night's friendly at AFC Fylde
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Simon Grayson satisfied with Blackpool's pre-season progress after Barrow win

The midfielder was due to line up for the Seasiders at Moss Lane, where a side led by first-team coach Ian Dawes went down to a 2-1 defeat - Ben Tollitt grabbing Pool's goal.

However Grayson decided not to risk the 22-year-old, who suffered a slight knock in the midweek 2-0 win at AFC Fylde.

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“His thigh was a bit stiff this morning, probably more from the Fylde game on Tuesday night," Grayson told The Gazette after Pool's 3-0 win at Barrow on Saturday.

“He was supposed to play at Altrincham but we decided it was too early as we don’t need any players being risked for the sake of it.”

A team of youth team players and fringe first-team players who are in need of minutes will turn out for Pool at Squires Gate on Tuesday night (7pm kick off).

Grayson's men will then play their final pre-season friendly of the summer on Saturday when they welcome Blackburn Rovers to Bloomfield Road.

Related topics:Simon GraysonBlackpoolIan DawesAltrinchamSeasiders