Bolton Wanderers boss Owen Coyle encourages young defender Joe Riley
Bolton Wanderers manager Owen Coyle has urged youngster Joe Riley to step up his game if he wishes to earn regular appearances for the Trotters this season. The 20-year-old defender made his debut in the 5-0 victory over Stoke City and has earned positive reviews after his first start for the senior team.
He even earned a standing ovation when Coyle decided to take him off later on in the game, which earned him a spot against West Bromwich Albion. While the game was aimed at lifting Bolton Wanderers out of the bottom three in the Premier League table, they ended up losing the fixture 2-1.
However, Coyle had previously mentioned the chance Riley could earn for himself and stressed on the importance of young players. The Scotsman is known for his ability to develop youngsters, something he seems to be doing with Riley, amongst others.
Coyle said in an interview:
“He did himself a power of good in the Stoke City game and I've always said if players do well for me then they'll get that opportunity again.”
Coyle was hopeful the likes of Josh Vela, Adam Blakeman, http://www.senore.com/Football-soccer/Michael-c25261 O’Halloran and Rob Lainton would also follow in Riley’s footsteps and soon make their way into the senior team. He did however admit, there was a long way for a lot of the young players to go before they could be a permanent part of the team.
He revealed:
“We think there's a number of them that can have big careers and it's a question of bringing them in at the right time.
The English defender started his football career with Bolton Wanderers in 2001 and has been in the youth academy since then. He got his big break when he made his debut in the Carling Cup clash against Macclesfield Town in early 2011 and his Premier League debut against Stoke City.
Coyle continued:
Joe was ready to play, he got his opportunity and what he has to do now is kick on from that and not think he's arrived because he's played one good game. He's got to do that consistently, but it's great to see.”
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