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The new central defensive partnership of Prince-Desire Gouano and Derik Osede got off to a winning start against Wolves on Saturday and Wanderers boss Neil Lennon is excited about the future for the pairing.
The duo, both signed in the summer, are set to continue at the heart of the back line against Sheffield Wednesday tonight with Dorian Dervite back from suspension but now ruled out by Lennon for a number of weeks after picking up an injury in training.
But the boss has no concerns his young defenders will again shine after a positive display in Saturday’s first win of the season.
Lennon told The Bolton News: “Prince and Derik are good players.
“Naturally, it will take time for them to adapt. There were a few things like communication at times and they will need to work on that.
“But there was nothing major to concern me.
“I thought they acquitted themselves quite well on Saturday.
“They are young and it’s a whole new experience for the two of them but they will get better.
“Prince has been excellent since he came in and we are really pleased with Derik.
“We think he is going to have a good future here.
“It is a big fillip for them to play for the first time together and win.”
Lennon was keen to bolster his defence ahead of his first full campaign as manager and the summer departures of Matt Mills and Tim Ream increased that need for additions.
Frenchman Prince arrived on a year-long loan from Italian side Atalanta while Derik was signed from Real Madrid on a permanent deal.
The latter picked up an ankle injury in the final pre-season friendly against Charlton preventing him from making his debut until the weekend clash with Wolves.
But the duo were finally paired together by Lennon who says the addition of their pace to his defensive unit is a big plus point.
The Northern Irishman said: “They give us pace at the back and it’s a nice dimension to have.
“It means we can get further up the pitch when we want to press teams in the knowledge we have genuine pace to take care of things at the back.
“They read the game well and want to defend – they throw their bodies on the line at times.
“It was a very good debut for Derik and we have been really impressed with Prince.
“Hopefully they can maintain that consistency for however many games they play together.”
Dervite is not the only absentee for Lennon tonight with midfielder Neil Danns a major doubt after suffering concussion at the weekend.
The Whites boss added: “Dannsy is a doubt.
“By all accounts he lost consciousness for a while.
“With all the rules and regulations you cannot be too careful with something like that.
“We’ll see how he is but obviously I will have to be guided by the medical team.
“Players’ health and safety is paramount.
“For the sake of one game it’s not worth a risk.
“With head injuries it can be an unknown quantity – you just don’t know how bad it is.
“Thankfully he was conscious and fine after the game.
“But just the fact he was out – even for just a second – I don’t think we can take a chance with that.
“Dorian will be out for a few weeks.
“He picked up a ligament injury in training so hopefully it will heal as quickly as possible.”
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The duo, both signed in the summer, are set to continue at the heart of the back line against Sheffield Wednesday tonight with Dorian Dervite back from suspension but now ruled out by Lennon for a number of weeks after picking up an injury in training.
But the boss has no concerns his young defenders will again shine after a positive display in Saturday’s first win of the season.
Lennon told The Bolton News: “Prince and Derik are good players.
“Naturally, it will take time for them to adapt. There were a few things like communication at times and they will need to work on that.
“But there was nothing major to concern me.
“I thought they acquitted themselves quite well on Saturday.
“They are young and it’s a whole new experience for the two of them but they will get better.
“Prince has been excellent since he came in and we are really pleased with Derik.
“We think he is going to have a good future here.
“It is a big fillip for them to play for the first time together and win.”
Lennon was keen to bolster his defence ahead of his first full campaign as manager and the summer departures of Matt Mills and Tim Ream increased that need for additions.
Frenchman Prince arrived on a year-long loan from Italian side Atalanta while Derik was signed from Real Madrid on a permanent deal.
The latter picked up an ankle injury in the final pre-season friendly against Charlton preventing him from making his debut until the weekend clash with Wolves.
But the duo were finally paired together by Lennon who says the addition of their pace to his defensive unit is a big plus point.
The Northern Irishman said: “They give us pace at the back and it’s a nice dimension to have.
“It means we can get further up the pitch when we want to press teams in the knowledge we have genuine pace to take care of things at the back.
“They read the game well and want to defend – they throw their bodies on the line at times.
“It was a very good debut for Derik and we have been really impressed with Prince.
“Hopefully they can maintain that consistency for however many games they play together.”
Dervite is not the only absentee for Lennon tonight with midfielder Neil Danns a major doubt after suffering concussion at the weekend.
The Whites boss added: “Dannsy is a doubt.
“By all accounts he lost consciousness for a while.
“With all the rules and regulations you cannot be too careful with something like that.
“We’ll see how he is but obviously I will have to be guided by the medical team.
“Players’ health and safety is paramount.
“For the sake of one game it’s not worth a risk.
“With head injuries it can be an unknown quantity – you just don’t know how bad it is.
“Thankfully he was conscious and fine after the game.
“But just the fact he was out – even for just a second – I don’t think we can take a chance with that.
“Dorian will be out for a few weeks.
“He picked up a ligament injury in training so hopefully it will heal as quickly as possible.”
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