Having first team players involved in the squad presents no better opportunity to learn for our under-21s, according to professional development phase coach Gary Dicker.
They are in action today (Monday) when they take on Leicester City at 3pm, with the game live on our YouTube channel.
Adam Webster played for 60 minutes in our last Premier League 2 match against Everton, which Dicker says was a huge opportunity for our young players to learn.
“Adam showed that he got ready for our under-21s game the same way he does for a Premier League match. When the under-21s look back on that, they’ll learn from it.
“His decision making, understanding the game in the moment, picking out the right pass, organising and speaking when he had to was exactly what the boys needed to see. We get players who come down and enjoy doing so. They can see that we’re trying to replicate the first team’s philosophy as much as possible.
“It was a good for our players to see the levels that you’ve got to be at in every game at the top, you can’t just switch it on and off. Whichever player drops down, they’ve got the right attitude.”
The under-21s will be aiming to pick up their first win of 2023, having lost their last three matches.
“We’ve not performed consistently over 90 minutes which I would say has hurt us the most,” Gary added. “We’ve had really good spells or halves, but football doesn’t owe you anything. We were on a decent run before this and things can change quickly. It’s about getting back to what we’re good at.”