Jon Whitney hopes Florent Cuvelier's Walsall woes are behind him

The talented Belgian has been blighted by injuries for the past three years and almost saw his career end when he ruptured his anterior cruciate knee ligament in 2014.

Cuvelier enjoyed two successful loans with Walsall back in 2012 before rejoining the club on a permanent basis last summer. But his return to the Banks's Stadium has also been hampered by injury with the 24-year-old having struggled with an ankle

problem.

Now the Belgian, who looks set to feature at Port Vale today, is aiming to prove his fitness as he seeks to earn a new contract. And Whitney has backed him to return to his best.

"I have known Flo a long time and it was always going to be a process with him getting used to the pace again," he said.

"He has had a few years now where he has struggled with injury.

"But we have worked on him, we have worked on his strength and we have pulled him out when needed.

"It's been frustrating for fans and it's been frustrating for me because I know what Flo can bring to the team.

"But he is starting to show that now and over the last three or four weeks in training he has been really

consistent.

"That shows how he has turned the corner.

"I don't want to tempt fate but hopefully he will go on to play a big part in the rest of the season."

Meanwhile, midfielder Isaiah Osbourne has compared skipper Adam Chambers to a Viking following his towering performance against

Bradford.

"Skip is liking a Viking." the former Villa man said.

"He just keeps going and keeps battling.

"He is always talking to me in games and I try and talk to him.

"If you have got a partner that can talk to you and communicate – it's a massive advantage.

"It makes your job much easier.

"He tells me where I need to be and I tell him where he needs to be. That makes things a lot easier."