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Zach Clough has been warned not to consider a January move away from Wanderers for the sake of his career.
Phil Parkinson believes the young striker, who was today named Sky Bet League One Player of the Month for October, needs to knuckle down at the Macron and prove himself before thinking about moving on elsewhere.
Clough’s name has never been far from the gossip columns since breaking into the team nearly two years ago but injuries have also restricted the number of first team appearances he has made in that time.
Six goals in nine starts this season suggest the 21-year-old is now starting to fulfil his promise in a Wanderers shirt. But Parkinson insists there is plenty more to come from the academy graduate and that he is under no pressure to cash in on one of the club’s prized assets.
“I still think he’s learning his trade as a player,” the manager said. “The chairman (Ken Anderson) has said we don’t want to sell our best players and I don’t want to get talking about Zach going elsewhere because I don’t think it’s any good for him.
“He’s at the stage where he needs to get his head down and concentrate on playing football.
“He doesn’t need his agent saying ‘so and so rang me the other day’ or ‘there was something in the newspaper’ because more often than not, it’s a load of rubbish.
“I just want him to focus. He’s in a good place and we want to keep him there.”
Parkinson, who also collected his second Sky Bet Manager of the Month award, feels Clough’s situation mirrors that of a number of young players across the country.
“What is happening now is that before a player has really learned his trade people start talking about him going here, there and everywhere with ridiculous numbers and fees,” he said.
“I don’t think that bodes well for the player. I want Zach to grow with us first of all but if that didn’t happen we’d want him to be sold as a player we’d improved, taught good discipline, and that would stay with him for the rest of his career.
“In English football at the moment young players have learned next to nothing and they get moves which make them millionaires overnight. They haven’t had the flaws ironed out in their game.”
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Phil Parkinson believes the young striker, who was today named Sky Bet League One Player of the Month for October, needs to knuckle down at the Macron and prove himself before thinking about moving on elsewhere.
Clough’s name has never been far from the gossip columns since breaking into the team nearly two years ago but injuries have also restricted the number of first team appearances he has made in that time.
Six goals in nine starts this season suggest the 21-year-old is now starting to fulfil his promise in a Wanderers shirt. But Parkinson insists there is plenty more to come from the academy graduate and that he is under no pressure to cash in on one of the club’s prized assets.
“I still think he’s learning his trade as a player,” the manager said. “The chairman (Ken Anderson) has said we don’t want to sell our best players and I don’t want to get talking about Zach going elsewhere because I don’t think it’s any good for him.
“He’s at the stage where he needs to get his head down and concentrate on playing football.
“He doesn’t need his agent saying ‘so and so rang me the other day’ or ‘there was something in the newspaper’ because more often than not, it’s a load of rubbish.
“I just want him to focus. He’s in a good place and we want to keep him there.”
Parkinson, who also collected his second Sky Bet Manager of the Month award, feels Clough’s situation mirrors that of a number of young players across the country.
“What is happening now is that before a player has really learned his trade people start talking about him going here, there and everywhere with ridiculous numbers and fees,” he said.
“I don’t think that bodes well for the player. I want Zach to grow with us first of all but if that didn’t happen we’d want him to be sold as a player we’d improved, taught good discipline, and that would stay with him for the rest of his career.
“In English football at the moment young players have learned next to nothing and they get moves which make them millionaires overnight. They haven’t had the flaws ironed out in their game.”
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