I predicted there would be some changes (it’s the League Cup, obviously there was going to be).
However, those were all changes and personnel that I felt were more suited to the here and now to try and fix our league form. Scott Parker though went a completely different way with it, by making a couple of changes in order to ‘rest’ a few players ahead of our next game against Villa (perfectly understandable given the fixture congestion).
One thing he did though, and I felt fascinating to see, was also take a look towards the future by who he brought on with the likes of Fabio Carvalho and Tyrese Francois, the former of whom seemed to really impress and got plenty of praise along the way for his display.
And even though this was against a very weakened Championship side, they both showed what they are capable of and that they have a future in football, if not at this club then somewhere else. The question now becomes what do we do with Carvalho, Francois and the other players in the academy.
Do you care about how well the academy does in competitions like the EFL Trophy?
Yes
No
In my mind, they need to be playing and they need to be playing now, and in some ways, now is the perfect time for them to be doing so.
With clubs lower down the football pyramid looking for cheaper players to fill their squad to help ease the financial burden, if we can send them out on loan whilst eating the wages (a small price to pay in order for them to develop in my eyes), then we’ll see the benefits of that move in a few years’ time when they are ready to play senior football for us.
There probably isn’t going to be much use for them in the first team this season, barring a catalogue of injuries, so it would be a shame to stunt their growth by putting them back in the academy. They’ve had a small taste, now it’s time to give them a bigger one.
What about you? Would you like to see players like Francois and Carvalho loaned out this window?