Opinion: Why the absence of 27 y/o ace might not be such a disaster after all

I might sound crazy, but hear me out on this one.

The general reaction from supporters after the draw with Hull City on Saturday surrounded one man, 27-year-old Jeremie Bela, and the fact that he hasn’t started either of our two games since the restart, playing just 65 out of a possible 180 minutes, just over a third.

It’s fair to say that Bela has been one of the better signings that the club made this season based on what he’s brought to the team, in fact I put him at number two behind Scott Hogan on that very list, so it’s understandable that some fans might not be too happy with the idea of him sitting on the bench for these games.

And to an extent, I’m one of them, unless it’s a cup game, you pick your best eleven, and based on the impact he made on Saturday, you can make the argument he should be starting more often.

But here’s the thing, I’m not totally against the idea of Pep Clotet leaving him out of the team either. I’ve spoken before about the idea of the club using these last few games to essentially put plans into place for next season, and in a sense, by leaving Bela out, Clotet is doing just that.

He’s allowing different combinations and ideas to come to the surface, like allowing Dan Crowley, someone who was in and out of the side in the weeks before the season paused to have a go in different positions out wide instead of Bela.

Whilst Clotet won’t be around next season, he’s giving players the opportunity to showcase what they can bring to the new manager. Bela’s place is pretty much assured based on his contributions for us, now it’s time to see if other players can fulfil that role as well.

Those are my thoughts anyway, what about you? Do you agree that Bela’s reduced role is giving more players the chance to shine?