Last weekend’s Barclays Premier League victory over Sunderland at the Stadium of Light saw young attacker Danny Hoesen named on the bench for the first time this season.
It was certainly a rewarding moment for the young Dutchman who endured an extended spell on the sidelines this season after suffering a hip injury.
Hoesen has already shown good form for the Development Squad this season and as Billy McKinlay explained to fulhamfc.com, more is expected from the player next season.
“It’s well documented that he had a serious injury in the early part of the season,” McKinlay said. “It’s taken time for him to get back, I still don’t think we’re going to see the best of him until next season. I don’t think he’s fully fit yet, it’s difficult to get your fitness back during the season after having been out for a prolonged period of time.
“As a player he’s got good movement and he’s quiet clever in terms of how he sees space and how he exploits it.
“I think he’s found it difficult at times but now he’s getting fitter. He might be slightly disappointed that the season’s coming to an end – so it’s important that he works hard over the summer and keeps himself ticking over.
“He knows that he needs to improve and it was a nice little reward for him to be on the bench for the Sunderland game. He had a fairly serious hip injury so I don’t think we should underestimate that. He’s worked hard to come back and you also have to give the medical staff credit, he was almost housebound for a period of weeks and didn’t put any weight on his leg.
“It was good for him to see how things are at the sharp end – the most important thing is that he uses it as a catalyst. He’s got to make sure that the taste of the First Team fuels his determination to come back better next season.”