Blues boss Kieran McKenna felt Wednesday’s 3-1 victory over Millwall was a step forward for centre-half Axel Tuanzebe.

The 26-year-old made his second league start for Town against the Lions having joined the club shortly after the transfer window closed after leaving Manchester United at the end of last season following an injury hit couple of years.

Tuanzebe joined the Blues still feeling the effects of a back injury and was given plenty of time to get up to speed before making his debut for the club in the Carabao Cup tie against Fulham, then a sub appearance against Birmingham in the Championship before his league bow at Rotherham.

“I think the other night was a good step forward for him,” McKenna said. “I think there's been progression in every game that he's had really on the pitch, so the other night was good progress, but also lots of areas to improve and I think that's exciting.

“He's been excellent since he came here. I knew he would be, but he's been excellent in terms of his way around the building. He’s very mature for his age, he's very focused, he's a good professional and he's been training really well.

“We had always planned and agreed with him that it would be an easy build from a games point of view and then beyond that there's a process to understanding how we play and what his role would look like on and off the ball, and there's been a lot of work going on in that. 

“And as much as he's had some top experiences in his career, he also hasn't played a lot of games now in quite a few years, so, very much like all the players, he's still someone very much learning his game and how he can be effective and how he can improve. It's been enjoyable to have him around. 

“We've tried to manage him well. He's up to a good level now and had a couple of starts, and I think each start's been a little bit better.

“We'll have to make a decision on Saturday whether it's too soon for him to go again and we'll do that with the medium and the longer term in our mind, not just the short term.

“But he's a really good player to have in the squad. We’re in a really strong position now, we've got Luke [Woolfenden] and Cameron [Burgess], who have played most of the games this season, I think have been playing really, really well.

George Edmundson has done excellent in general when he's had his opportunities, and Elkan Baggott has done excellent when he's had his opportunities.

“So we're in rude health in that position and it's great to have Axel getting up towards full speed now as well.”

Photo: Matchday Images

Suffolkboy added 16:52 - Dec 1 This piece exemplifies KM’s judgement , vision and patience and tells us so much about his invaluable skills as a manager of men ! Open , honest discussions and joint involvement in the ‘project’ are key pointers to eventual success — and AT is doing great things right now ! Come on , another super Blue coming along !
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MK1 added 17:12 - Dec 1 If we can keep him on the pitch, will be an absolute remarkable signing. Quality center half that can only make us stronger.
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Linkboy13 added 17:31 - Dec 1 It's seems the back injury is something that Axel has got to live with and adjust to and he might not always be available on a regular basis. McKenna seems reluctant to play Baggott at the moment. The centre of defence still seems an area that dosent look one hundred percent solid to me. If Axel can get back to his very best it would solve half the problem but i still think we need another left sided central defender .

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dirtydingusmagee added 19:42 - Dec 1 if we can keep our position till January and then HOPEFULLY get a couple of players in to add a little more strength where needed ,we should push on . All players have off spells but the lads have done an amazing job so far and they are a unit with nobody rocking the boat . COYB
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gosblue added 21:38 - Dec 1 Tuanzebe takes up much better positions and he and Burgess play much closer together than Woolfy and Burgess. It just looks more like a unit with Axel in the side. Woolfy is still learning and is doing well but it’s about partnerships. The positioning of Clarke and Burgess was also very good as was the overall shape. Tuanzebe has the experience to pull the strings as well as look after his game. Unfortunately I can’t see him starting too many of our seven games this month. Woolfy can be excellent, let’s hope he’s been taking notes.

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TrumptonBlue added 11:10 - Dec 2 A minor point, but Tuanzebe didn’t come on as a sub at Birmingham.
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Rimsy added 11:56 - Dec 2 Hopefully Wolfenden will learn from Axel. He's still raw and his decision making is not always the best. If Axel can nurture him there's still a top quality defender in going forward. For now though, Axel starts as long as he's fit.
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