Adams won't rush Loft return

Doug Loft is close to making his Port Vale return but boss Micky Adams refuses to put a timescale on the skipper's comeback.

Loft has missed Vale's last three games but it seems the 26-year-old is itching to get back into first-team contention as soon as possible. Adams told the club's official website: "Doug is making progress, he is working with the physios and rehab is going well. We are hoping to have him back sooner rather than later. "If I said he would be back in two weeks and then in two weeks time he wasn't back, people would start asking questions. "The thing with Doug is he wants to play and half the battle is putting the reins on him because whilst other people might take that extra day or that extra week, he wants to get back. "We have to be very careful about that because if we do let him back too early we are going to lose him for another month and we don't want to do that." Another Vale player currently out injured is goalkeeper Chris Neal, and Adams is happy to let him take the necessary time to heal properly. "We have got to be mindful of the fact that it is a wrist injury and he is a goalkeeper," said the Vale boss. "We have got to give that time to heal and we will do. "We are happy with what Sam (Johnson) is doing at the moment, but hopefully Chris Neal will be back sooner rather than later."