Nathan Jones, Charlton Athletic’s manager, has spoken about Connor Wickham adding a physical presence up front.
The former Crystal Palace striker has signed a short-term contract with the Addicks, making his debut as a late substitute in Saturday’s 3-2 victory over Carlisle.
Wickham created a flick on, which resulted in Alfie May scoring the game-winner at The Valley thanks to Sam Lavelle’s bad backpass effort.
The Addicks are without targetmen Chuks Aneke and Miles Leaburn due to injuries, with the latter not anticipated to return until the end of the season at best.
“He (Wickham) contributed when he came on and he gives us something different – we know we have got a bit more size and presence up there, with the running, pace and movement that the others bring,” Jones said.
“We need a balance. We’re still waiting for Chuks to be fully fit, but once he is, we’ll have tremendous front-line power.
“With Leaburn and Aneke’s lack of fitness, we are limited in size and vertical presence. We have so many other things
that having that just adds to us; that’s what we’re really happy about.”
Lloyd Jones did not make the matchday roster to face the Cumbrians.
“We pulled Lloyd out because we had Hec (Michael Hector) coming back and we also played with three centre-
halves, as well as having (Nathan) Asiimwe who can fill in,” Jones told reporters.
“Lloyd had a minor quibble, which we resolved. He needed an injection, which allowed him to train fully this week.”
Midweek results mean that teams below Charlton in the table can no longer catch up simply by winning their games in hand.
Jones, however, paid little attention to those games earlier this week, preferring to concentrate on Saturday’s trip to Fleetwood Town.
“It’s all about us. “If we do what we do, we don’t want to be dependent on anyone else,” he stated.
“It’s wonderful that others aren’t winning games below us, but we need to start thinking about doing things differently.
“I’ve always believed that you have control over your own destiny – that everything is God’s plan – and that you can do whatever you want for yourself. Then everything else is secondary.
“The only game I watched in midweek was the Fleetwood-Bristol Rovers match because it was crucial to us. Apart from that, it doesn’t matter what others do.”
Leave a Reply