Walsall manager Jon Whitney has spoken to the local press and praised young central defender Kory Roberts, who impressed during the Saddlers League One victory over Plymouth Argyle last weekend, insisting the Birmingham-born defender has what it takes.
19-year-old Roberts was promoted to the starting line-up following a raft of international call-ups which saw five players, including on-loan West Brom defender Shaun Donnellan, become unavailable for selection.
Jon, who was speaking via the Express & Star, insisted that he had no doubts about adding the teenager to his back-line, he said; “I thought Kory was outstanding against Plymouth. It was a very mature performance. He got tight well, won his headers, his passing was really good and he put his foot through it when he needed to.
"But we all know Kory’s got great potential. I had no doubt, when I decided to keep this game on that I would just slot Kory in at centre. There were no concerns for me with that. He can handle it. He doesn’t shy away from it. You saw last year when he played really well in one game and had a bit of an indifferent one after it, he didn’t put his head down. He came in taller, was accountable, learned from it, reflected and he’s got stronger from it.
"This is what we talk about when playing the kids – sometimes they are going to have indifferent games. But there is no finger-pointing from Kory. It’s simply, ‘Okay I won’t do that next time, I’ll improve and be a much better player for it’."
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