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Ian Evatt is confident that Dapo Afolayan will soon be back in top form at Wanderers.
The club’s top scorer was dropped to the bench in last weekend’s victory against Ipswich Town – but still came on in the second half to put himself into double figures for the season.
Evatt made some big changes to his side in an effort to get a long overdue win and is looking to repeat the job again at Shrewsbury this afternoon.
“Taking players out of the team is never easy and they were big decisions last week, but decisions that I felt needed to be made. It wasn’t just the individual, it was more the collective,” the manager explained.
“Einstein said the definition of insanity is doing the same things and expecting different results, and sometimes you need to change things and we decided to change them.
“It worked for us and Dapo still had a huge impact on the game, you have to remember that he came on and scored the second goal and he’s trained really well this week.”
Afolayan had not been dropped from the starting line-up for a league game since April last year but despite his electric form this season, Evatt says he is not immune to rotation in the squad.
“Obviously, he’s chomping at the bit to play and I expect nothing less,” he said of the former West Ham winger. “He’s been one of our brighter lights so far this season, but it doesn’t mean to say you can play every game. We must also remember that this is Dapo’s first full season in men’s football, so he’s going to have dips.
“He’s still a young player and he’s probably had a bit of a dip, but it’s about how we manage that dip and get him back to the Dapo that we know and love - and we do still love him and just because he hasn’t played one game, we still think the world of him and he’ll be a huge part of what we do in the future. But for now he has to sit, breathe and find his way into the team.
“It’s the same with Joel (Dixon). He understands the decision and no-one’s ever happy to be left out, but we have to change things. We chose to do that and it paid off, but do I think it’s the end for Joel? Definitely not.
“It’s just about taking a breather, letting someone else take the pressure for a little while and coming back stronger when the team is in a much better place.
“Hopefully that’s the case.”
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