There was some interesting news that came out of yesterday’s U23 game.
Making his return to action after a long spell away from St Andrew’s was defender Jonathan Grounds.
Grounds last made an appearance for the Blues back in April 2018 away at Wolves, and having spent last season on loan at Bolton Wanderers, it looked like he could be in contention to make a fresh start at the club under Pep Clotet. However he sustained a calf injury during pre-season and hasn’t been seen in first team action since.
However, after his run out for the U23s on Monday, it looks like he could be on his way back into the first team picture pretty soon. Speaking about his injury last week, Clotet said:
“Jonathan and Cheick have been training with us for a few days, after Groundsy came back… They’re now getting their fitness back. It’s good because we now have good numbers in training, and we can focus a bit on developing better training sessions and it’s good for everyone because it puts less stress on a few of the positions. At the end of the day a player doesn’t want to be injured, they want to be ready and available. Jonathan was with us (the first team squad) before he got injured. Every player in our club is a contender and that’s how it should be.”
Whilst he is the longest-serving of the squad having been signed back in 2014 and has been a loyal servant since, I’m not so sure if we should be considering bringing him into the setup. The fact that he was a bit-part player in a Bolton side that did so poorly last season in the Championship might be the biggest indication that he’s not quite the player he once was. Is it worth us bringing him in and disrupting the good start that the Blues have already made at the start of the season?
What about you? Do you think that he should be recalled to the first team once he is 100% fit? Or do you think that the back-line needs to stay as it is for the time being?
