Head coach Giancarlo Italiano is keen to bring Sander Kartum into his Wellington Phoenix starting line-up after the Norwegian’s goalscoring debut, but says he needs to take a cautious approach.
The attacking midfielder scored moments after coming on as a substitute against Newcastle Jets, but Kartum might not be physically ready for a starting role.
Sander Kartum. … promising debut.
“That’s an ongoing discussion with the staff. We have to put player welfare first,” Italiano said ahead of Friday’s men’s A-League match against Melbourne City.
“I’ve got two players in that position where I want them starting, that’s Nikola Mileusnic and Sander.
“Sander is being integrated slowly. He also had a hip injury before he left Scotland, so we’re monitoring that.
“If you ask me personally, I’d start him and play him until he falls over, same with Nikola, but we have to manage their injuries and respect the advice from the medical staff.
“I want them playing more, and we’re trying to push them as much as we can. It’s just a very fine and delicate situation to balance.
“We also have got Bill [Tuiloma] that’s come into the team and is in the same boat [and] he hasn’t played for a large chunk of time.
“We have to really be responsible because … I maybe made an error last year when I rushed a player back in and then he was out for a longer period than what was expected.”
Head coach Giancarlo Italiano is keen to bring Sander Kartum into his Wellington Phoenix starting line-up after the Norwegian’s goalscoring debut, but says he needs to take a cautious approach.
The attacking midfielder scored moments after coming on as a substitute against Newcastle Jets, but Kartum might not be physically ready for a starting role.
Sander Kartum. … promising debut.
“That’s an ongoing discussion with the staff. We have to put player welfare first,” Italiano said ahead of Friday’s men’s A-League match against Melbourne City.
“I’ve got two players in that position where I want them starting, that’s Nikola Mileusnic and Sander.
“Sander is being integrated slowly. He also had a hip injury before he left Scotland, so we’re monitoring that.
“If you ask me personally, I’d start him and play him until he falls over, same with Nikola, but we have to manage their injuries and respect the advice from the medical staff.
“I want them playing more, and we’re trying to push them as much as we can. It’s just a very fine and delicate situation to balance.
“We also have got Bill [Tuiloma] that’s come into the team and is in the same boat [and] he hasn’t played for a large chunk of time.
“We have to really be responsible because … I maybe made an error last year when I rushed a player back in and then he was out for a longer period than what was expected.”
