Jason Euell admits Bristol City are yet to decide whether Tommy Conway’s development this season will be best served in the first-team squad or out on loan after the teenage striker impressed alongside Chris Martin for their pre-season friendly against Plymouth Argyle.
Conway partnered Martin and put in a bright shift for the 60 minutes he was on the pitch as a willing runner when the Robins were in possession and constantly setting off the press when City were looking to win it back from their impressive opponents.
Conway has 11 City appearances to his name, having been used sporadically by Nigel Pearson since he took the job at Ashton Gate in February 2021, and has been highlighted by the manager as one of the next wave of academy talent who could make a sustained impact at senior level.
The suggestion is to earn greater experience he needs a season out on loan in the EFL to get 30+ games and iron out some of the creases in his game but first-team coach Euell insists, with three friendlies remaining - Forest Green Rovers, Exeter City and Bournemouth next Saturday - for now, he remains very much in the first-team conversation.
Conway would be the outsider for the striker’s berth vacated by Antoine Semenyo's injury at the start of the season, with a combination of Andi Weimann, Chris Martin and Nahki Wells - who scored the winner at Home Park - likely to start against Hull City on July 30, but the Taunton-born forward is very much in the mix.
“It’s pre-season, it’s an opportunity for everyone to stake a claim and that’s what he’s doing now. You can never say there’s a plan for someone because things can change,” Euell said.
“At the moment, he’s with us and he’s staking a claim to being in and around that starting line-up for the first game of the season, similar to all the players that are here.”
What stands out in Conway’s game, and certainly what was evidenced at Home Park, was his relentless desire to try and be impactful, either off the ball in his pressing or on the ball, by looking for openings.
It’s clear his attitude and athleticism has caught Pearson’s eye, who has regularly praised academy graduates such as Alex Scott and Ayman Benarous for their defensive work rate more than their obvious ability on the ball.
Despite only having been at City a few weeks, after departing Charlton Athletic earlier this summer, Euell is well versed in what Conway can bring to the table given his time as the Addicks’ Under-23 coach.
“I’ve had many games against TC from when I was doing the 23s at Charlton, so I’m aware of him, Belly and Ryley - those youngsters,” Euell added.
“What TC gives you is good honesty; he gives you the work rate on the ball, gives you the work rate off the ball - you know what you’re going to get from him and it’s now how we sort of manage and control that at this level.
“Sometimes the enthusiasm and your honesty that make you go and try and win the ball, that’s the time teams can pick you off. You can’t take that away from players, it’s about how we control how he does that and how he utilises it, because we want players to be doing that for 90 minutes but not in a way that’s detrimental to the rest because your honesty takes away the shape.
“But, for him, it’s brilliant that he’s been around the group for practically the whole of last season and now he’s getting the opportunity to stake a claim in the starting line-up for the first game like everyone else.”
SIGN UP: For our daily Robins newsletter, bringing you the latest from Ashton Gate
READ NEXT
