CRAIG Davies faces an uncertain future at Wanderers after Neil Lennon admitted the club are running out of suggestions on how to solve his fitness problems.

Out of contract in the summer, the striker had hoped his two goals against Cardiff on Monday could be a start of an injury-free run until the end of the season, eventually leading to a new deal.

But the Wales international’s hamstring jinx struck again on his return to training on Thursday – leaving Lennon facing a big choice in the coming weeks on whether to keep him at the Macron Stadium.

“There is an underlying problem that he keeps breaking down,” the manager explained. “A fit Craig Davies is an asset to me and the club. We have a balancing act to do. Would I like to keep him here next season? Yes.

“Would I like him to play more games? Certainly. It is something we will have to sit down and talk about with Craig and his representatives.

“We can't go one in five or one in 10 games. It is not the players' fault. He just has a penchant for breaking down. Everything has been looked at including sciatic and back problems.

“He is very highly strung and his hamstrings are not as strong as other people’s.”

Davies is the club’s top scorer with seven goals this season but has started just three of the last 24 games, sidelined in the majority with hamstring problems.

His brace in South Wales at the start of the week appeared to mark a fresh start for a player whose attitude has made him a popular figure on the terraces.

Yesterday’s news comes as a major blow – but Lennon was quick to exonerate either the club’s medical staff or the oft-maligned training pitches at Euxton of blame.

“Craig has an ongoing hamstring problem and there is nothing my medical team can do about it,” he said. “There is nothing wrong with the pitches in this instance. It is just bad luck.

"He had two days off after the game and there was no mention of feeling stiff or sore. He didn't even make it through the warm-up. Whether he has torn it or strained it, we don't know yet.”

Soft tissue injuries have become a concern to the Wanderers boss who is keen to assemble a more durable squad next season.

Lennon has used a post-war record 43 players this season, a total only eclipsed by relegated Blackpool in the Championship.

“We are paying good money for players but I want to see players on the pitch week in, week out,” he said. “I don't think it is my medical staff. We just need more durable players for what we want to achieve next season.

“There is balancing act. People talk about rest but Sean Dyche rarely changed his team last season. Maybe you could say Sean got lucky but he made the most of that luck.

“It could be a way forward in terms of can you find a 16-17 man squad that you can go with for the season. We have used too many players but it was something that was taken out of our hands."