Boss Roy Keane says he doesn’t want to put too much weight on Connor Wickham’s young shoulders during the 2010/11 season. The youngster, who signed a two-year professional contract a fortnight ago, has begun to establish himself as a regular first team starter in recent weeks.
Keane, who says he will be looking for additional frontmen this summer, feels that it’s too soon to expect Wickham to be the club’s main striker: "I don’t want to be too dependent on a 17-year-old to fire us out of the Championship.
"You see the teams which have gone up, they have more than one player in double figures and they certainly aren’t depending on a 17-year-old, although Connor could buck the trend on that side of it.
"Even last week, although I took him off against Forest, he was probably one of our better players. But we’ve also got to be careful of the boy, he’s got England stuff coming up and he’s still growing.”
Keane feels that it’s important for the academy product to have a break during the close season: "As much as it’s a big summer for Connor, it’s important that he has a holiday and he rests up.
"As you’d expect with any 17-year-old he’s got lots of energy and always wants to be doing stuff, but there’s a discipline to chilling out and having a holiday, which is something we’ll be discussing with a lot of the younger players.
"We’re due back for pre-season on about the 28th June and I don’t want my players to be taking seven or eight weeks off, but you do have to rest the body for three or four weeks.”
Meanwhile, Sunderland boss Steve Bruce, linked with an exchange deal involving Wickham last weekend, admits that he’s a player he rates: "We’re well aware of the lad, he’s a very talented boy.
"But if he became available, I’m sure there would be plenty of other clubs, not just us, who would like to be kept in the picture.”
Town are unlikely to be interested in selling the striker, while Wickham could have joined any of several Premier League clubs prior to signing his recent deal had he been looking for an early move into the top flight.