Carlisle United boss hints at keeper contract breakthrough

Manager Paul Simpson provided a positive update on contract negotiations today.

And he suggested an agreement with the 20-year-old Cumbrian could be close.

Breeze turned down United’s initial offer of improved terms while Simpson last week said the respective parties were still a distance apart.

But asked for an update by the News & Star today, the Blues boss said: “We’re hoping that it's going to be resolved very soon. I think we're very close to having it resolved.

“I know he wants to stay. We've just got to get it right for all parties.”

Simpson confirmed the resolution he anticipated would be a positive one.

Breeze was offered new terms after his four-game run in the first-team over the winter. The academy product has since returned to the bench after the January signing of Bradford City’s Harry Lewis.

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The Cumbrian remains ahead of former No1 Tomas Holy in the goalkeeping pecking order with a fourth keeper, loanee Jokull Andresson, out injured.

On the team news front, meanwhile, forward Sean Maguire should be back in contention for this weekend’s trip to Bristol Rovers after an ankle problem, but Josh Emmanuel is not yet ready to return following a knee tendon issue.

Sean Maguire is back from injury ahead of the Bristol Rovers trip (Image: Ben Holmes)

“Sean’s fine. He's joined in training and he’s trained fully this week, so he's okay,” said Simpson.

Emmanuel, the manager said, would hopefully rejoin full training next week with a view to being available for the Reading home game next Saturday.

Simpson is assessing other players’ fitness ahead of this weekend’s game while United have been “nursing” loan winger Jack Diamond through the week as he tries to negotiate an ongoing ankle issue.

“We’ve got three who got bumps and bruises last weekend, who we’re hoping will be fit for this weekend. But we'll just wait and see,” said Simpson.

United’s boss, last weekend, said he may have to take Diamond out of the firing line for a short spell because of the ankle which keeps getting “whacked”.

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But he could still figure on Saturday. “He's one of them who we have nursed through this week, and there are definitely improvements from shutting him down,” said Simpson.

“So we're hopeful that he'll be fit for the weekend. We're just going to have to wait and see. But he desperately wants to be fit.

“He's certainly not saying, ‘I want to come out of it’. He wants to be involved. He wants to play.”

Simpson, meanwhile, insisted there were no long-term concerns over Georgie Kelly despite frustration over the deadline-day striker signing’s fitness.

An ongoing calf problem is keeping the former Rotherham United man out until next month but Simpson said: “There are no longer-term concerns. We expect him to come through this.

Georgie Kelly (Image: Richard Parkes)

“His games record in terms of starting hasn't been brilliant for Rotherham, but he has been available.

“So this is just one of those little things where we've not been able to get him right. But we expect him to be okay.

“He was at a point where he was pain free, and he was able to do the progressions that we wanted. But then he had a setback.

“And you look up and down the country and even at Premier League clubs, who’ve got bigger and stronger medical departments than we've got, they're having the same issue.

“So it’s not a situation that's isolated to just Carlisle United. It's everybody for whatever reason.”

Joshua Kayode’s return remains no clearer as he battles a calf problem. Simpson said the loan striker is currently back at his parent club.

“At the moment he’s back at Rotherham, and he's being managed by them at this moment in time,” said Simpson of a player who has made just two appearances since joining the club in September.

“We're as disappointed as he is and as frustrated with it, but we would like to try and get him back. And we've just got to wait and see how that goes.”