Boss Sabri Lamouchi says rising Nottingham Forest star Alex Mighten can earn his chance in the Championship this season.
The 17-year-old has made two appearances in the Garibaldi so far, both in cup competitions.
His debut came as a substitute against Arsenal in the Carabao Cup back in September, and he was then handed his first start in the FA Cup defeat to Chelsea little more than a week ago.
Mighten put in an impressive performance at Stamford Bridge, and was subsequently named on the bench for Saturday’s league clash against Reading.
He didn’t get on the pitch in that 1-1 draw, but with the Reds looking for a winger to help strengthen their attacking resources, Lamouchi could have one option already in his ranks.
Asked if Mighten could play a part as Forest look to mount a promotion push between now and May, Lamouchi said: “I don’t know. If he deserves it, why not?
“I need all good players. I need all quality players.
“I need all players focused on the same project.
“We are all in the same boat and we all want to achieve the same target - the same goal.”
With the visitors looking to break the deadlock at the Madejski Stadium, Lamouchi brought on Joe Lolley and Ryan Yates, while Carl Jenkinson made his league comeback after injury, as the third substitute.
Forest thought they had snatched the three points when Ben Watson fired home in added time, only for a Tobias Figueiredo own goal just seconds later to leave them with a point.
In different circumstances, though, Lamouchi says Mighten could merit being given a runout.
“I didn’t include him (on the bench) just because of his performance against Chelsea,” the Frenchman said.
“I was so surprised about his performance (at Stamford Bridge).
“It was not a gift to bring him with us.
“Probably in a different situation, he can help us.
“But we decided to do something else. It was just the plan in my mind, just the change to make. It was not perfect but it was close to being perfect.”
