Boss Paul Jewell says striker Connor Wickham has all the tools to be a top player but believes it’s important not to put too much pressure on him while he is still a baby in footballing terms. Wickham, 17, played the full 90 minutes as Town lost Jewell’s first game in charge 2-1 at Millwall on Saturday.
The new manager said: "I think we have to be careful not to hype him up. He’s got all the tools, all the attributes. But he’s learning the game, he’s a baby in terms of football.
"He’s got a bright future ahead of him, we’ve just got to make sure we work with him on the training ground day-in and day-out, he gets experience and we don’t put too much expectation or pressure on him."
Jewell says he doesn't think the England U21 international is currently being affected by the weight of expectation: "I don’t think he feels the pressure. He had flashes of what he was capable of [at Millwall]. But he’s a young player and they’re up and down. He’s got a bright future ahead of him and hopefully he can score us a few goals and become even better.”
Physically, the new boss says Wickham has everything required: "He is a special one. He’s a great shape, he’s got good legs. As I say, he’s got all the tools, but for Connor’s sake, it’s not fair on him for us to keep building him up because like any young player he will go through phases of inconsistency, but he’s got all the tools there.
"The experience he’s getting at the moment will keep him in good stead, but we’d like to be winning games.”
Wickham, who is contracted to the Blues until the summer of 2012 but has been linked with all the top Premier League clubs at some point over the last couple of years, turns 18 on March 31st when he would be able to agree a further deal at Town.