After Trueman’s debut, the pressure will increase. Now let’s see if he can handle it – Opinion

I suppose it’s only fitting that we hear from the man of the hour himself.

Having been the subject of a lot of talk in the aftermath of the game, now’s the time for Connal Trueman to give his thoughts on the game against Huddersfield, as well as his transition from the substitute’s bench to the first team.

Speaking to BCFC.com, the 23-year-old spoke about how being a substitute didn’t necessarily stunt his development, and that his work ethic has helped him get through since he last pulled on the jersey in a competitive game back in August last year:

“When you’re not in the team it’s obviously disappointing because you want to be in it but all you can do is keep your head down and work as hard as you can on the training ground every single day and keep trying to prove yourself. I feel like I’ve progressed a lot without playing the number of games I would have liked to. I think I’ve come a long way by being a part of the group and being part of the first team squad for that long. You pick up things and it’s a great experience to learn from all the time.”

The one thing I’ll say in response to this, and it’s something I’m finding myself saying to a lot of people when it comes to Birmingham at the moment, is that after those words, he has to go out and prove it. If he thinks that he’s managed to up his game whilst not actually playing, then that leads me to believe that his play is set to go more or less through the roof in the coming games now that he has his place in the first team back.

After the catastrophic period that we have just gone through in regards to Lee Camp and his errors, there’s going to be a lot of scrutiny on him going forward, to see if he’s a marked improvement on Camp, or, and this is extra important with the January transfer window a little over a month away, we’re going to have to bring in another goalkeeper because he’s not up to the task.

And whilst he started off with a reasonable display against Huddersfield, making five saves, the games are going to be coming thick and fast and with an increase in games comes an increase in pressure. Will he be able to handle it?