Motherwell ace backed to respond after injury blow as duo out until November amid key updates

The former Rangers playmaker had hit form at Fir Park following his season-long loan switch from Wycombe Wanderers but is now set to be out until after November’s international break. Motherwell are on a six-game losing streak in the league ahead of Wednesday’s clash with St Johnstone but hope to have Regan Charles-Cook and Lukas Fadinger involved following their absence during Sunday’s home defeat versus Hearts.

Oscar Priestman, Paul McGinn, Callum Hendry and Johnny Koutroumbis - also out into November - will miss the trip to Perth alongside Lowry. Johansson said: “It’s a blow. Alex has been good and he has more levels to take.

How has Alex Lowry performed at Motherwell?

“He has established as a starting player and was on a good run, and would have been even better after another month. That’s a blow for him but it’s a small hurdle and he will be back soon. Alex and Cooky haven’t been fit lately and that is a blow when we aren’t scoring goals.

“We hoped Oscar would be back by now but we felt last week that it was a bit early for him. His type of injury takes time and if you have any kind of sensation, you don’t risk it. Like Alex, we won’t see Johnny until after the break due to a muscle injury.”

Johansson has sought to continue the possession-based style predecessor Jens Berthel Askou deployed successfully last season en-route to a fourth-placed finish. Six defeats have brought pressure but Motherwell’s philosophy is something the Swede feels has them set up for longer-term rewards.

He said: “What I believe is that when a club has a clear philosophy like Motherwell, it definitely helps. Can the supporters see that the players are trying to play in the style the club wants? If the answer is yes, and the results aren’t there, then it still helps in terms of alignment. Is it good enough at the moment? No. But clarity helps any organisation.

“It’s business as usual on a daily basis. Absolutely. The external noise? It’s always there in football, whether you are doing well or bad. What I have learned is that you have to be professional and keep a close circle at the club and be a locked-in family. Don’t focus on the external noise because that’s when you can start to be emotional and erratic.

“It’s about improving, not changing. If I start to change and we lose..what then? It’s about improving the details and we have to be a little bit mature and aggressive. Our work in the box is improving and we are moving in the right direction. You also saw how we kept Hearts quiet in terms of xG and stuff like that. There have been improvements but we still have 10 per cent to go.”

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