Nottingham Forest loanee Alex Mighten has been told by Sheffield Wednesday manager Darren Moore that it will "take time" to build up his body for playing 90 minutes after making a rare start against Leicester City's under-21s.
The 20-year-old has endured a difficult loan spell with the League One side since arriving in late August. Just seven appearances have followed for the winger, but just four of those have come during the club's league campaign, with them currently sitting in a play-off position.
Mighten's minutes have mainly come in the midweek Papa John's Trophy matches, starting all three of their outings, including the final group game against the academy side of Forest's East Midlands rivals. That competition is now over for Wednesday, though, after finishing third behind Burton Albion and Bradford City, who advance to the knockout stages, begging the question of what is next for the Reds' academy graduate.
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Manager Moore has since spoken at length about the player and how he sees him within the Owls' squad. "What you have to remember with Alex is he has always been an impact player coming on the pitch, and we want him here to play and start games, " their boss told Yorkshire Live.
"It does take time, and he got 90 minutes (against Leicester). I thought his game got better as the game wore on. He showed some great, close quick feet, which we know he will bring us.
"He unlocks defences when people are sitting deep. He has got the ability to go past people, which is really important.
"He can feel pleased with his 90 minutes. It builds up his cardiovascular system and his body to recover over 90 minutes."
Our colleagues at YorkshireLive had a rather less positive outlook on the performance, though, awarding the player a 5 in their ratings and the following comment: "Off the pace. Too often his decision-making let him down. Struggled to make an impact. It is just not happening right now for the Nottingham Forest loanee."
What should Forest do with Mighten in January? Have your say in the comments...
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