The City boss brought Callum Doyle into his 11 for the win over Norwich and, with his ability on the ball and his natural left-footedness, the Manchester City loanee made a big impact. However, it was just his fourth Championship start in 16 games since he returned from injury.
And that is because of his lack of pace. The same is true for Conor Coady, who has only made one Championship start this calendar year.
“The problem is that you have to defend 50 metres in behind. And Jannik (Vestergaard) is not quick, Callum is not quick, Conor is not quick, Wout is the quickest one but is not very quick. So we try to adapt. But I love Callum. I love Conor.”
With three games in seven days on the horizon as City take on relegation-battling Birmingham, Millwall and Plymouth, rotation may be necessary, and so all of the defenders may get their chance. Ben Nelson is also set to return to contention after missing the matches against Bristol City and Norwich through injury.
Wout Faes and particularly James Justin can track back more quickly, and that’s vital for a team that stations themselves as high as City do, and look to press the opposition near their own goal. Maresca says he loves Doyle and Coady, but that a lack of pace does affect his selection choices.
“You can see (Doyle’s impact), it’s so clear,” Maresca said after the 3-1 win over Norwich. “The only problem with Callum, with Conor and with the defenders that we have, and I’ve said many times, not one of them is quick.
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