My first thought after the final whistle at Craven Cottage on Monday night – “Elliot Anderson might finally get a game now we’re officially safe!”
Honest, it was! I said I wouldn’t celebrate our “survival” and I didn’t. I can’t say I wasn’t relieved that our Premier League status was confirmed. Of course I was, but it is nothing to celebrate in my opinion.
But I did think that the biggest winner in all this may be Elliott Anderson in particular – especially when Bruce denied him a loan move to Luton after promising he’d get game time from January onwards.
Aside from a late cameo at Arsenal in the FA Cup, he’s not played a minute and must be pretty frustrated that we’ve allowed him to stall in the reserves and miss out on matchday squads – not play week in week out in the Championship!
I understand that a recent hip injury will more than likely see him miss out against Man City, but there’s every chance he’ll be fit for the Sheffield Utd game next Wednesday. What a bonus that would be for those fans attending and perhaps even an opportunity for Steve Bruce to deflect the attention elsewhere.
For me, it’s now all about the summer and next season. I would love us to finish with a few wins over Sheffield Utd and Fulham, but it’s a perfect opportunity to play Anderson, if fit, perhaps even alongside Matty Longstaff and Willock? Who knows, that could be our midfield trio in years to come!
Heck, he may even save us some money if we discover he’s as good as we all hope. Remember too that Sheffield Utd and Fulham are now Championship bound. Even if Anderson doesn’t stay at NUFC and goes out on loan next season it will be a chance to see what he’s capable of at that level.
Not only that, it’d be wrong and pretty infuriating for Anderson if Bruce backtracked on his January promise and didn’t even bother. We have a knack of messing talented Academy players about and seeing them thrive elsewhere at clubs that believe in them, so it’s time we gave him a shot – especially when he looked anything but out of his depth the one time we saw him at Arsenal.
With Wilson out, hopefully precautionary rather than long-term and us safe, what possible excuse can Bruce come up with to avoid playing Anderson? None that I can see unless of course his injury is worse than we’re led to believe.
Rather than give the departing Andy Carroll a goodbye game against Sheffield Utd next week, let’s start future star Elliot Anderson!
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I think it is a must that the likes of Matty Longstaff and Elliott Anderson are given the opportunity that has been denied them due to the circumstances we have found ourselves in either by accident or poor management and lack of forward thinking.
We can’t allow talent to leave the club and have to give youth a chance, this was an area that disappointed me with Rafa Benitez, who like Bruce played it safe.
And about time we got rid of the dross we have.
Joseph(Quote)
I think now is the perfect time to look forward to next season, play some of the young guns like Anderson, Matty longstaff, Bruce stopped both of these lads from going on loan.With Graham Jonses help we look like a football team again.
Bill Burn(Quote)
Are you serious?
You do realise that if he plays the lad, then the promise by definition is not broken?
Plus – it would have been the most unbelievable negligence imaginable to send a forward out on loan then not have a replacement, if, say, someone got injured?
Helen Clarey(Quote)
You’ve missed the point Helen. Bruce insisted back in January that he had a part to play would get plenty opportunities – hence why he blocked a loan move to Luton – but he hasn’t.
Several months later and he’s barely been included in a matchday squad, never mind handed his debut, yet he could’ve been playing week in week out in the Championship.
As for a replacement, you must be forgetting the fact Bruce signed Willock, brought S Longstaff back into the fold and has continued to leave out Matty, so there’s plenty options!
There’s no way of justifying his decision to deny him that Luton loan move when you see what’s happened – even if he starts vs Sheff Utd next week.
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