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Bradford City manager Graham Alexander has explained what led to his recent bizarre decision involving Manchester United star Ethan Wheatley.
Bradford Loan
Wheatley was loaned out to Bradford during the winter transfer window. He spent the first half of the campaign on loan at Northampton Town.
He did well at Northampton but United remembered him. A report from The Peoples Person stated that United considered his spell there a success, but ultimately felt he would develop better elsewhere.
To date, Wheatley has made five League One appearances for Bradford, coming off the bench each time. He has not yet registered a goal contribution.
Bradford came into action against Rotherham on Tuesday and won 1-0. Wheatley was again among the substitutes, but was given a golden opportunity to feature more prominently when he came on in place of the injured Kayden Jackson in the 24th minute.
However, Wheatley did not finish the match and was himself withdrawn after 50 minutes of action.
Alexander spoke to reporters after the final whistle and revealed what prompted him to sign Wheatley and replace him with Stephen Humphrys at Valley Parade.
The Bradford boss explains Wheatley’s decision
The Bantams gaffer said of Wheatley [as quoted by the Yorkshire Post]“I saw him for a few minutes before we took him back off and put Humphs (Stephen Humphrys) on, he was absolutely breathing out of his backside.”
“He missed a lot of football last winter due to his injury and he is getting back up to speed.”
“I thought it was the right choice to put him in for Kayden with our press. They have a pretty aggressive lineup, so there’s room in the back so we can keep working.”
Alexander added: “I actually said to Chris (Lucketti) after five minutes, because it was quite early when he came on, I think we might have to use another nine at some point.”
“I thought it would be good for Humphs to continue the way they have been playing in the last 20, 25 minutes. All three of them proved to be a handful for Rotherham to deal with.”
Alexander’s comments indicate that Wheatley is still in the process of returning to full fitness, having spent several weeks on the sidelines during the final stages of his loan to Northampton.
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