New Collingwood assistant coach Brenton Sanderson has confirmed star AFL recruit Daniel Wells has a calf injury that is forcing him out of training.
But the Magpies insist it is not a major issue, saying Wells is on a managed program until after Christmas.
Sanderson's comments follow media speculation after Wells did little at training last Friday and left the track early.
The Magpies insisted then that Well was not injured.
Sanderson said on Tuesday morning that Wells had a calf injury that would sideline the midfielder for 10 days.
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Collingwood rightly point out that they want Wells at full fitness in March, not now.
But it is significant because the free agent has come to the club as an injury risk.
While he managed 19 games this season, lower-leg issues restricted Wells to just 12 matches over the previous two years.
"He's probably going to miss about 10 days of training, he's got a slight strain of the soleus which as you know once you hit 30 they tend to pop up every now and again," Sanderson told RSN.
"He really is the Ferrari in the garage that you just want to bring out when you need to and he's just going to add so much class to this side.
"We've just got make sure we get him to round one in really good physical shape and typically players at the back-end of their career need to managed more carefully and he definitely ticks that box.
"We've just got make sure we get him to round one fit and raring to go."
Wells, 32 next February, played 243 games for North Melbourne before joining Collingwood.
