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Josh Vela’s rise to prominence last season embodied Neil Lennon’s brand new attitude at Wanderers, yet 12 months later a very different story is unfolding.
The young midfielder found himself completely disregarded in the days of Dougie Freedman and contemplating a move away from the club he had called home since the age of nine.
But he was one of a handful of ex-academy graduates brought immediately into the fold when Lennon arrived last October, a very public demonstration from the manager that all slates had been wiped clean.
Vela, used primarily as an emergency right-back, won The Bolton News’ player of the season and looked set to be a key cog in Lennon’s midfield this time around.
However, a fragmented pre-season, which saw the Salford-born ball-winner sent home from the club’s pre-season tour of Austria with a sickness bug, proved a precursor to a very rapid fall from grace.
Vela has started just three games, all defeats, and last saw competitive action against Wolves on September 12, leading to questions about how he could have been exiled so quickly?
Lennon said at the end of last month that Vela and Jay Spearing would “get their chance” but while Spearing started at Burnley last Saturday, Vela has continued a silent vigil from the bench for the last nine games and is now being used as a stick to beat the manager by fans who disagree with his selection policy in the last few weeks.
The manager has been reluctant to discuss Vela’s absence from the team – but he is by no means the only player to find himself quickly out of favour.
Summer signings Lawrie Wilson and Francesco Pisano have been shunted out of the right-back slot by Derik Osede, who was initially signed as a centre-half.
And Prince-Desire Gouano, whose bright start to the season saw him lauded as a real find from Atalanta, has also spent the last two games watching from the sidelines.
Lennon had hinted that the Frenchman’s non-appearance against Burnley and Birmingham was more about bringing extra physicality into his side in the form of Dorian Dervite and David Wheater than any poor form on the defender’s part.
And few can argue that Derik – regardless of his more natural position – has been among Wanderers’ better performers in the last couple of games.
It is Vela’s exile that has now become a real bone of contention among the club’s fans, with a rumour sweeping round the camp that contract bonuses could be the root cause.
That has been denied by sources at the club but if there is an under-lying reason for Vela not getting a chance, then the manager has been reluctant to discuss it.
“Josh is knocking on the door, Prince is there or thereabouts anyway,” he said, when asked whether Vela or Prince are in his immediate first-team plans.
“But they won’t score goals, or create anything, although I did think about bringing Dorian off after he got the yellow card.
“(I didn’t bring them on because) It was all about trying to get back into the game.”
Wanderers have more options in midfield than perhaps any other position – which may go some way to explaining Vela and Spearing’s wait for action. But finding the balance continues to be a chore for the Whites boss.
Neil Danns and Mark Davies have played in the deeper-lying positions with mixed results, while Darren Pratley is yet to rediscover his form since returning from injury and both Liam Trotter and Medo Kamara are way off the reckoning.
Lennon’s experiment with a 4-4-2 on Tuesday night limited the available places even further, although it would be a major surprise to see him name the same formation against Leeds this weekend, with the manager admitting the system did not quite go according to plan after the final whistle.
“The quality was better on Saturday but we wanted to go two up at home,” he said, having named Emile Heskey and Gary Madine up front for the first time.
“I thought that was the right way.
“It’s positive and it does leave you a little bit open at times in midfield sometimes, but I thought we were on top in the game.”
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The young midfielder found himself completely disregarded in the days of Dougie Freedman and contemplating a move away from the club he had called home since the age of nine.
But he was one of a handful of ex-academy graduates brought immediately into the fold when Lennon arrived last October, a very public demonstration from the manager that all slates had been wiped clean.
Vela, used primarily as an emergency right-back, won The Bolton News’ player of the season and looked set to be a key cog in Lennon’s midfield this time around.
However, a fragmented pre-season, which saw the Salford-born ball-winner sent home from the club’s pre-season tour of Austria with a sickness bug, proved a precursor to a very rapid fall from grace.
Vela has started just three games, all defeats, and last saw competitive action against Wolves on September 12, leading to questions about how he could have been exiled so quickly?
Lennon said at the end of last month that Vela and Jay Spearing would “get their chance” but while Spearing started at Burnley last Saturday, Vela has continued a silent vigil from the bench for the last nine games and is now being used as a stick to beat the manager by fans who disagree with his selection policy in the last few weeks.
The manager has been reluctant to discuss Vela’s absence from the team – but he is by no means the only player to find himself quickly out of favour.
Summer signings Lawrie Wilson and Francesco Pisano have been shunted out of the right-back slot by Derik Osede, who was initially signed as a centre-half.
And Prince-Desire Gouano, whose bright start to the season saw him lauded as a real find from Atalanta, has also spent the last two games watching from the sidelines.
Lennon had hinted that the Frenchman’s non-appearance against Burnley and Birmingham was more about bringing extra physicality into his side in the form of Dorian Dervite and David Wheater than any poor form on the defender’s part.
And few can argue that Derik – regardless of his more natural position – has been among Wanderers’ better performers in the last couple of games.
It is Vela’s exile that has now become a real bone of contention among the club’s fans, with a rumour sweeping round the camp that contract bonuses could be the root cause.
That has been denied by sources at the club but if there is an under-lying reason for Vela not getting a chance, then the manager has been reluctant to discuss it.
“Josh is knocking on the door, Prince is there or thereabouts anyway,” he said, when asked whether Vela or Prince are in his immediate first-team plans.
“But they won’t score goals, or create anything, although I did think about bringing Dorian off after he got the yellow card.
“(I didn’t bring them on because) It was all about trying to get back into the game.”
Wanderers have more options in midfield than perhaps any other position – which may go some way to explaining Vela and Spearing’s wait for action. But finding the balance continues to be a chore for the Whites boss.
Neil Danns and Mark Davies have played in the deeper-lying positions with mixed results, while Darren Pratley is yet to rediscover his form since returning from injury and both Liam Trotter and Medo Kamara are way off the reckoning.
Lennon’s experiment with a 4-4-2 on Tuesday night limited the available places even further, although it would be a major surprise to see him name the same formation against Leeds this weekend, with the manager admitting the system did not quite go according to plan after the final whistle.
“The quality was better on Saturday but we wanted to go two up at home,” he said, having named Emile Heskey and Gary Madine up front for the first time.
“I thought that was the right way.
“It’s positive and it does leave you a little bit open at times in midfield sometimes, but I thought we were on top in the game.”
Source
