Bolton Wanderers Blog: Give Viv A Chance

When Viv signed on deadline day in January, Bolton Wanderers fans were pleasantly surprised by the business that Parkinson had done with this deal.

A talented winger who quickly became something of a youtube sensation for Whites fans. Having not come across him before, footage of his trickery, quick feet, eye for goal and pace was all I had to go off, but was certainly something to get excited about.

Having spent the majority of his first few playing years at Birmingham City and won young player of the year in last years campaign, I was looking forward to seeing what he could offer at the Macron.

However, the strength of the team over the past few months have meant that his opportunities have been extremely limited and has therefore had to settle for a place in the U23 squad.

Similarly to how I felt about Max Clayton, Viv has been wasted a little, considering his proven talent, which he hasn't had the chance to express for us as of yet. There was one game however, that the winger particularly caught my eye, which was the Bradford away game in February.

After a poor first half, Viv came on at the break and quickly made an impact as he ran at the defence and began to grow in confidence which, in my opinion, between him and James Henry, lead to us pulling that game back.

Seemingly a quite stocky lad with considerable pace, a combination of attributes which Bolton have been missing on the wing for some years and could be applied very effectively given the chance.

However, the current form of our regular starters has made it difficult to fault Parky’s team selection and is understandable why Viv hasn't been allowed to make the impact that he has in his locker.

This brings me to the question, why did we sign him then?

Clearly, Parky saw the potential that Viv showed coming through the ranks at Birmingham and knew that his pace and strength would be valuable assets to the team. The impact that Viv made at Bradford most effectively presented this but hasn't since managed to break into the team and build on that impressive first performance.

Given the form of the team at the moment, and Viv’s potential, it seems logical that Viv’s loan signing should be seen as a trial for him to be kept on in summer, and will hopefully strengthen the depth of the squad next year and prove his worth from the off as the players collectively re-start their battle for a regular place in the starting XI.

Personally, I think that Viv should at least be allowed to be given the role of an impact sub and terrorise the tiring defences of the respective oppositions as we look to solidify automatic promotion.

Although, in recent weeks Parky has seen to favour the likes of Conor Wilkinson which seems a little harsh considering that Wilkinson has been at the club a number of years when Viv is only with us to the end of the season.

With opportunities wearing thin as the season comes to a close, I hope that Parkinson will find room for him on the bench before the end of the season, if not, will at least consider re-signing him in the summer window to allow him a better opportunity next season.

I hate to see players like Viv wasted and hope he will be handed the chance he deserves at Bolton, even if it rolls over into next season.

In the meantime, I hope the team can continue their push for automatic promotion and earn ourselves back a rightful place in the top two tiers of English Football.