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Albion keeper Foster not rushing comeback

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Albion goalkeeper Ben Foster is targeting an October return at the earliest – after admitting his comeback from knee ligament surgery cannot be rushed.

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The Baggies number one has revealed the operation to repair his damaged anterior cruciate ligament was a complete success.

But the 31-year-old – who has suffered similar injuries in the past – knows his return must be a steady one.

"I know what to expect," said Foster. "I've been here before.

"You can't push cruciates – you have to do six months. That's a must.

"There is no chance of coming back early so I know it's at least October before I return.

"You follow the guidelines of what the physio says and take it from there."

He added: "October would be the six-month target so fingers crossed it will be around then.

"We have a great set of physios and doctors so fingers crossed it will all be okay."

Foster suffered the injury during Albion's 1-0 win over Stoke City at the Hawthorns earlier this month, though the true extent of it was only discovered during exploratory surgery on the knee.

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And he said: "I had a collision with Peter Crouch and even now I'm thinking 'what on earth are doing challenging Peter Crouch...' It was stupid on my part.

"I got knocked in the air when I went for the ball so it spun me around and I lost my sense of where I was.

"As I landed I did so on a straight leg, which is always a no-no because you want some bend in the leg to cushion in.

"You can see from replays that my knee buckled and I just heard this pop as I landed. I couldn't feel my leg or my knee and it kept giving way.

"It shut off completely. I hoped I had only jarred it but it became pretty obvious it was worse than that."

Despite the time he is facing on the sidelines, Foster remains in good spirits.

"I feel really good all things considered," he said. "It was a big shock to learn Id done it but the operation was a complete success.

"There was no other injury within other than a bit of cartilage.

"It's as good as it could be, given the injury it is.

"If there is ever a good time to get such an injury it's now where you know a good part of your recovery will be during a period where there are no games.

"You can't get upset or worry about it too much. You have to stay positive and look towards getting a full rehab."

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