Ilmari Niskanen: Exeter City's Finland winger set to return after injury

Ilmari Niskanen started both of Finland's Euro 2024 qualifying games in September

Exeter City's Finland winger Ilmari Niskanen could return to the League One side's squad this weekend after recovering from a dislocated shoulder.

The 26-year-old has not played in two months after being hurt in Finland's Euro 2024 qualifying defeat by Denmark.

Niskanen's absence has coincided with a drop in form that has seen City go from the top of League One to 18th place, with just one league win in that time.

He joined Exeter from Dundee United in August but has played just three times.

"He's an incredible character in how he's approached this situation," manager Gary Caldwell told BBC Radio Devon.

"It would have been very easy for him to just go and get an operation and be out for four months, but he has worked extremely hard with the physios to get to the level he is.

"He's been training for two or three weeks now and progressing in terms of his load and the contact that he can take.

"He's got a mindset and character that's got him to this point and hopefully he can continue to go through the processes to help him play and get back to full fitness and play week in, week out, which would be brilliant for the whole team really."

Niskanen's return is a boost for an Exeter side that have been ravaged with injuries over the past couple of months.

Dion Rankine, Jack Aitchison, Cheick Diabate, Harry Kite and Admiral Muskwe are among the other City players who have missed significant chunks of the season with injury, while influential winger Demetri Mitchell is out for the rest of the season after damaging knee ligaments last week.

"It's been a big factor in what's gone wrong and I could talk for a long, long time on how that has impacted a lot of different things," Caldwell said.

"Ultimately we can control some injuries - soft tissue injuries which we've had a few, but very small ones - the only major one being Dion Rankine.

"But we have had a lot of contact injuries, which is uncontrollable.

"You have to deal with it, you can't get too down about it, it's part and parcel of the game, so we have to deal with that however it comes."