Ralph Hasenhuttl has reaffirmed his faith in Yan Valery and that there is no rift, he just felt the player needed a break.

Many Saints fans have been puzzled at the omission of Yan Valery, after the youngster started the opening three Premier League fixtures he has been an unused substitute in all of the games played since, even when it seemed natural to slot him into the team due to injuries.

That didn't happen though and after the issue at Spurs when Cedric was forced to pull out with injury in the warm up and Ralph Hasenhuttl completely changed shape rather than slot in Valery as the natural replacement, the tongues have really started to wag as whether there is some sort of rift.

But the Saints manager has now taken the time to clarify the situation and just why the young Frenchman has been out of favour, also hinting that now having had time to work on his game that he could be back in for the visit of Chelsea.

He said:

“As you know I really trust in the young players and I gave a lot of young players the chance to play so far and it’s normal that you come maybe then in a situation where you are a little bit struggling and your performance is not the best one.

“You can feel he is making a little bit more mistakes in the sessions.

“That wasn’t the reason I didn’t pick him against Tottenham. The reason was that we had the chance to change the shape because we know the opponent does it also and we expected something different.

“The injury to Cedric gave me the chance to change the shape also because otherwise I would take him on the back four position on the right side.

“For him it’s important he trained this week very well and he knows now the moment will come where he comes back on the team.

“I don’t want to pick a young player when I feel he is not in the best shape but when I see he is getting better and more comfortable with the ball and making less mistakes I think then is the moment to give him another chance to play.

“He knows he can compete on the highest level and this is what he has to do in the future.”

So the issue it seems is more about Valery's development as a player than any personal issue or rift, we have all seen youngsters come in and then take backward steps, sometimes they never regain the former momentum and sometimes they kick on and become truly great players.

There is also that fine balance of not overplaying them from both a mental and physical point of view and that is another fine balance to get right as the manager is well aware.

“It’s not easy because it seems that you don’t trust them anymore but that’s not right,” he admitted.

“It’s why you have to speak a lot with them and my assistant coaches do the same. They are working very hard with him on his weaknesses and to make him sharp when the moment comes.

“I think Cedric did a very good job and then you are suddenly out and another guy plays very well and you have to wait for the next chance to come and grab it with both hands.”

Photo: Action Images

redwight added 10:46 - Oct 5 Then why pick him as a sub if you don't think he is up to it - even in the event of his direct replacement being injured?
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fubsy added 12:01 - Oct 5 Because having him on the bench demonstrates Ralph still has confidence in him Redwight. It is very easy to destroy a young player's confidence and much harder to re-build it.
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andyt56 added 15:58 - Oct 5 Needed a rest after 3 games. Is he sure? He has to play Sunday.
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andyt56 added 15:58 - Oct 5 Needed a rest after 3 games. Is he sure? He has to play Sunday.
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redwight added 16:42 - Oct 5 Fair point fubsy, but then not playing him after Cedric pulled out would equally have destroyed his confidence - if not more.
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saintmark1976 added 06:24 - Oct 6 I suppose it a case of whether or not we believe what the manager says. That's a decision which can only be made by each individual reader of Ralph's statement.
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underweststand added 13:18 - Oct 6 I think too much is made of this "losing faith " in players if they are replaced /dropped . Because the team gets points doesn't mean everyone plays well, and maybe he looked a little "off-beam" and it's time to give "the other guy" a chance. It maybe a lot to do with the player's mindset and not "how good" he looked in training. Maybe the manager thinks he "could do better " and dropping him for a few matches can push him a bit more. In the case of Valery, he went off early in the Brighton win, and maybe lost a bit along the way. The likes of Ings, Armstrong amd Long may not be on the starting line up, but as I commented a few days ago, but when you have spent money on new players you have to see how they perform from the start and not wait until someone is injured and then give them a start in December. We've seen Djenepo, Danso and Adams for a few games and there are shortcomings in all of them and they may need more time to adjust to "the toughest League in the World". I'm just glad we have a bench (and a few more) who can eagerly come on as sub. without it raising a big groan of disappointment from the home fans.

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