Former Man Utd star, 26, out for months after almost losing thumb in kitchen accident, manager says

KIERAN McKENNA says Axel Tuanzebe faces a “few months” out after nearly losing his thumb in a kitchen accident.

It was revealed earlier this month that Ipswich’s Congolese defender required an emergency op when a glass shattered while he was washing up.

Speaking for the first time about the horror incident, boss McKenna said: “Some of the details came out of how he did it.

“It was a household accident — very unfortunate but very serious, very close to losing his thumb.

“He has had surgery to repair the tendons and everything in the thumb that was damaged.

“Now, he’s just recovering from that. I think the recovery’s going pretty well but it’s a long-term injury.

“As much as it seems like a pretty innocuous body part in the game  of football, it’s a pretty important body part in human anatomy and he needs to let it recover.

“Of course, he’s a loss and a miss. It just shows how quickly things can change in football and  in life. Thankfully, he’s recovering well and we now have to adapt and improve as a team.

“But we look forward to having him back when he’s ready again.

“It could be anything from a few months, maybe a little bit less if the recovery goes well.

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“That’s something we’re in dialogue with different specialists on.”

Tractor Boys centre-back Dara O’Shea is a doubt for Everton’s visit today after getting injured while on Republic of Ireland duty.

And McKenna added: “He had an issue in his back that’s being assessed, so we’ll see how it goes.”

McKenna plans to stick with £22.5million club-record buy Omari Hutchinson at No 10 — despite his stunning display for England Under-21s on the right wing.

Hutchinson, 20, had a hand in four goals in a 7-0 win over Azerbaijan.

McKenna said: “We’ve got a pretty clear belief in how we can make him most effective in different games and scenarios.”