Following the 0-0 draw with Swansea City, Tony Mowbray has been left with a major selection headache.
Tony Mowbray was irritated after two unnecessary bookings cost him his two first-choice central defenders against Birmingham City next weekend.
Dan Ballard and Luke O’Nien have started every Championship game this season, but Mowbray will be forced to make two changes at the Stadium of Light.
Both entered the game with four yellow cards and were both booked in the second half for fouls on Jamal Lowe, with O’Nien being booked at the start of eight minutes of stoppage time.
Jenson Seelt is expected to be named to the starting XI for the first time next weekend after being preferred to Nectar Triantis on the bench here.
Mowbray acknowledged his young strikers’ inexperience during the frustrating 0-0 draw with Swansea City, and said it was a similar story at the other end of the pitch in this case.
“It’s fine, [suspension] is part of the game,” Mowbray said.
“My frustration there is that again, it’s about managing the game. I’ve talked about the top end of the pitch, managing the game. “You’ve got to find space, double movements for the defenders so that you can work some space and then when the ball arrives, you score. At the back, I don’t think there was a threat. So why are we making last-ditch tackles that end up with us getting bookings?
“We’ve got to manage the game better, it’s a bit frustrating that both of them have got themselves into situations where they’ve got to take bookings. We’ll have to face Birmingham City without our two central defenders and so it’s going to be an opportunity for someone to come and show that they can do the job.”
Mowbray also confirmed that goalkeeper Nathan Bishop did not play because of personal reasons.
Bishop did not travel to South Wales due to a family matter, so young goalkeeper Matty Young was named to the bench. Young, 16, will turn professional at the club later this year and made his senior debut during the club’s pre-season tour of the United States.
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