Bolton’s youth prospects were a rare positive as Bolton were knocked out of the FA Cup on Friday.
In another toothless defeat against Bristol City, two players stood out for Wanderers.
22-year-old Joe Pritchard and especially 17-year-old Luca Connell.
The former played in behind Josh Magennis in the fourth round tie. Pritchard looked lively and warrants another look-in before the season is done.
Meanwhile, midfielder Luca Connell absolutely shone. He won man of the match in Marc Iles’ player ratings in the Bolton News. The youngster couldn’t have wished for a better start. He earned an assist as he played in a delightful cross that found Mark Beevers who opened the scoring after just six minutes.
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Even though Bristol then took the lead, Connell kept his composure.
He was cool-headed on the ball and showed more flare in one game than most of the Bolton team have shown all year.
While Pritchard had an acceptable showing in his first start since joining from Spurs, it’ll be the shaggy-haired Connell who’ll get people talking.
Whether or not Bolton boss Phil Parkinson will utilise his younger players in the league remains to be seen.
However, with Wanderers not showing any signs of making any moves in the remainder of the transfer window, the strong performances of the Trotter’s youth prospects will surely be a breath of fresh air for the club.
Would you like to see Bolton’s younger talent given a chance in the first team?
You can watch highlights of Bolton’s FA Cup tie below.
Video courtesy of FA TV (YouTube).