Manager confident Brighton man is on right track – Had to protect him this week
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Feyenoord manager Brian Priske believes Brighton and Hove Albion youngster Ibrahim Osman is on the right path at the club, but still needs to be protected.
1908.nl cover comments from the Feyenoord boss today on the youngster, who has found himself in the first team of late.
Osman is spending the season on loan from Brighton after joining the Seagulls in a €19.5m deal from Nordsjaelland in July this year.
He is the latest youngster signed by Brighton for the future and they've decided to send him out to the Netherlands for a year to aid his development and establish him in Europe.
He arrived at the club as a replacement for Yankuba Minteh, who spent last season with the Dutch side on loan from Newcastle before joining Brighton in the summer.
The winger left big shoes to fill with an impressive loan campaign and Osman is yet to fully step into them, but his manager is confident he's on the right path.
“He is certainly taking the steps we were hoping for," he said.
"I knew him from the Danish competition, so I have of course followed him a bit and know what he is capable of.
“At the moment he is in a phase where he is working on himself physically. He had the preparation at Brighton, but missed some practice matches to make minutes. That is why we are trying to build up his physique, so that he stays fit and does not get injured.
"We all see his qualities here. I still think there are some elements he needs to improve. Which is normal, because he is still young, 19 years old. He will take those steps. I am happy with the progress he is making now."
Feyenoord fans were left questioning Priske this week for his treatment of Osman after he took him 61 minutes into the 3-2 win over Girona.
That certainly raised eyebrows as the youngster appeared to be having a good game and finding his feet, which was eventually settled by an own goal from Ladislav Krejci in the 79th minute.
Priske wants to allay any fears, though, and insists it was simply because the Brighton man was on a yellow card, and he wanted to protect him.
"He creates danger with his speed and of course I would have left him on the pitch longer on Wednesday," he added.
“As a coach, however, you have to make difficult decisions. He was running around with a stupid yellow card, and you also have to defend yourself. I know he is an explosive player, both with and without the ball and that he sometimes comes into duels. Then you never know.
"In an away match in the Champions League it would also be difficult if he gets a second yellow card and therefore red. That is perhaps one of the things he still has to learn. To approach the duels in the right way and not get the yellow cards that could have happened in some respects.”
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