Bolton THE BIG MATCH

[jam tomorrow]

I think most would agree that Sparkes has improved his defensive abilities. The number of assists and chances he creates is a huge bonus and the occasional defensive lapse should be forgiven. Mousinho and his coaches are working on his defending. This area is much easier to improve than putting the ball on a mortar board sized target trom 35+ yards. It is easy to forget that Sparkes is still in his early 20s.

We have Oglivie as back up and he can cover central defence too.

I agree the club have helped impprove his defensive duties however the issue still remains he is not speedy enough to deal with a striker with real pace, in which case he will be skinned. Unfortunately you cannot improve a player who hasnt got any pace, you have to try to find ways round it, which the team are doing.