Blues boss Paul Cook says midfielder Tristan Nydam has the sort of desire and hunger that too many other people at the club don't have.
The 21-year-old made his first senior competitive appearance in two years following his broken leg and ruptured ankle ligaments in the 0-0 home draw with the MK Dons when he came on as a 62nd minute substitute.
However, since then the Zimbabwe-born, Colchester-raised midfielder hasn’t been in the first-team squad.
"Tristan’s cameo was based on the fact that he has the desire and hunger that a lot of people at this football club don’t have,” Cook said when asked about Nydam's recent return.
"If everyone in the club had his heart and his desire to win and to be good, I’ve watched him in two or three U23 games and when pain comes, he bites into his bottom lip and drives on.
"And it’s a characteristic that I love in players. For Tristan, it’s been a long road back. That was a reward for how hard he’s working.
"Going forward, it’s a long road for a lot of people because talent is not enough. It’s not enough. As I said, I don’t want to get into the depths because I’ll start going on and on, but the reality is, as you can realise, some of the stuff we do is not [what I want].”
Nydam is among the Blues players who are out of contract at the end of the season but with the club having an option to keep him for a further season.
Cook’s comments suggest that the academy product, a former England U18 and U19 international, may be one to escape the expected summer cull.