Fleet boss Daryl McMahon has refused to put any pressure on striker Aaron McLean after Danny Kedwell was ruled out with a double arm fracture.

Kedwell broke his arm in the 1-1 draw at Truro on Saturday as Ebbsfleet lost ground to leaders Maidenhead in the National League South title chase.

That has opened the door for McLean to return to the squad having been sidelined since September with a knee injury. He took part in full training on Tuesday.

But McMahon warned: “Hopefully, Aaron gets through training without any reaction this week, that’s the important thing.

“We can’t put too much pressure on him. The last thing we want is for him to break down. It’s important that we look after him – we can’t expect miracles.”

Kedwell came off early in the second half at Truro and was due to have surgery this week.

He is expected to miss the remainder of the season. Although McMahon knows that the player will try to return early if he can, he is also conscious of the bigger picture.

“We’re not sure (how long he will be out for) yet,” said McMahon. “He will probably have surgery on his arm in the next day or so. It’s not looking great.”

When asked if Kedwell could return wearing a protective cast, McMahon added: “Whatever way we can get him back out there we will try.

“But the important thing is that his arm is right. We all love football and are desperate to play but you’ve got the rest of your life ahead of you and we have to make sure that his arm is set properly.

“Knowing Keds, he’ll want to get back out there as quickly as possible.”

Fleet are now relying on other teams to drag back Maidenhead, who sit five points clear with four games to play.

Fleet host Eastbourne on Saturday before travelling to Margate on Easter Monday.

Maidenhead entertain Concord on Good Friday and visit Truro on Monday.

“We have to do what we have to do, so it’s a double-edge sword,” said McMahon, aware his team need to take advantage should Maidenhead falter.

“We’ve got to make sure that we still perform. From January we were 12 or 13 points behind Maidenhead, we’ve been on an amazing run and we’re still in there with four games to go.”