SAINTS manager Nathan Jones has expressed his support for defender Jan Bednarek after the 26-year-old was recalled from his loan spell at Aston Villa.
Nathan Jones said: “We spoke about it but he’s an experienced international player. I understand why there will be…but let’s take some context. Some people say some stuff when they go somewhere. And it just happens. You just say it because you want to endear yourself. Sometimes you don’t think or sometimes you don’t think about what the collateral damage could be behind you but there was no malice about it. He loves the club, he’s very popular in the changing room, and he worked very very hard for Southampton. It wasn’t anything to do with the club. He probably just wanted to endear himself to Aston Villa and that’s how I would see it.”
Speaking earlier in his press conference on Monday afternoon ahead of Saints’ League Cup semi-final first-leg clash with Newcastle United, Jones explained the reasoning behind the decision to recall Bednarek.
Nathan Jones said: “We felt we need a bit more experience in there, a bit more of a leader, a bit more of a voice. Because with the greatest respect, we’ve got some young centre-halves here, some of whom are in their first season in the Premier League, it’s a tough league. So we just felt we needed a bit of experience, a bit of aggression, a little bit of something in there. We could have gone out and signed someone new. But Janny (Bednarek)…someone who knows the place, someone who knows the building, has played in an aggressive team before…we felt he was the logical one.”
And not only is Jones excited to welcome back the experienced central defender, but he even indicated that Bednarek could be thrust straight into the action on Tuesday night against Newcastle.
Nathan Jones said: “Absolutely. He played in the FA Cup a couple of weeks ago, he played 90 minutes against Stevenage. I know it’s not a Premier League game but Stevenage under Steve Evans…I know all about them. Look, he’s in a place where he’s in contention. Whether he starts, whether he plays 90 minutes…is a different thing. But sooner or later he’s got to get up to speed. We’ll take calculated risks and gambles with players. I doubt he’s ready to go 90 minutes tomorrow night but he could be for 60 or 65 and we’ve got a squad that can handle that.”
Bednarek has appeared three times for Saints this season starting the first match of their League Cup quest, a 3-0 win at Cambridge United in August.
