GRAHAM Alexander expects Olly Sanderson to be fit and firing again for City – after laughing off rumours of a fall-out.
The on-loan Fulham striker has not featured since the end of September when he was subbed at half-time against Harrogate.
Sanderson has only been named on the bench twice in the last six games without getting on.
That has led to some speculation that there could be something more behind his absence.
“That’s absolutely nowhere near,” said Alexander, who sat down with the striker yesterday to discuss his situation.
“Olly’s a really nice guy and we had a good conversation. There were no raised voices or anything like that.
“It was just a young player who wants to know what he can do to get back involved and his manager giving him a bit of advice about what we need to see.
“I think he’ll be back involved in no time because he’s a good player and certainly has all the attributes.”
Sanderson scored three goals in his first month at City but Alexander revealed that the 20-year-old then tried to carry on through an illness – which impacted his performance levels.
“We brought Olly in to help us and he got off to a really good start,” added Alexander.
“He was ill for about a week or so and still tried to play and it took it out of him. He wasn’t anywhere near, so I left him out.
“I think the players that have come in have done reasonably well and results were good.
“As I explained to Olly yesterday, we brought him here for a reason. To be fair to him, he’s made a commitment to us as well.
“There were clubs closer to home that he could have gone to but he wanted to come here and challenge himself. So, there’s a commitment from both sides.
“I just told him what I needed to feel from him really. He’s desperate to get back involved.”
Sanderson was named on the bench at Cheltenham last week – where injuries meant the seven subs included two goalkeepers.
But he dropped out again for the Doncaster defeat following the return of Jay Benn and Tyreik Wright.
The City boss said: “We spoke about where he is and what I need to see. We did it a couple of weeks ago as well.
“He’s working hard to get back in and I’d love that. But I’ve got to be fair to the whole squad.
“We have strong competition in certain areas and centre forward is one of them.
“My loyalty is not just to players I’ve brought in this summer. I see everyone on an equal footing and you have to earn it.
“But he’s been fantastic with his attitude and his training.
“When I spoke to him last time, he said he was flat and couldn’t perform in training or in the games.
“It’s hard because he had a good start and scored a few goals. But sometimes illness can really take it out of you.
“He’s over that bout of illness now and is training day in, day out. He’s ready to compete again at the level he came in with.
“I’m sure we’ll see more of Olly sooner rather than later.”
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