Philippe Clement is a fan of fit-again Gabe Forsyth but there is no pressure to fast-track the Norwich City youngster into his Championship plans.
Forsyth made a competitive return last week for the development squad after 21 months out following a knee injury, and then further surgeries, which curtailed his meteoric senior rise.
The 20-year-old Scottish midfielder first emerged under Johannes Hoff Thorup two summers ago, but just weeks after a Championship debut and a new contract suffered a serious injury at Cardiff in November 2024.
“I'm super happy for him because he's a hardworking, honest lad and he has good technical qualities. We've seen that already,” said Clement. “He has also some edge in his game. So I'm really curious for the future what that will give us.
"But, of course, we need to bring him now in the right way and to get him first minutes with the Under-21s and build that story there.
“You cannot jump from two years of no football, with those injuries, and then stepping up at a level where the team needs to be right now. That's also different.
"The level of the team is rising, so to step out of an injury directly into the squad or playing minutes is a bigger step than it was four or five months ago. That's also the reality. But I'm really pleased what Gabe has been showing.”
Clement and City’s performance staff guided Ante Crnac and Papa Amadou Diallo back into the first-team picture recently, after long-term injury, and Forsyth will only be fast-tracked when he is ready.
“It's dangerous after two years out that you make long-term plans,” said the City boss. “Let's see how things go now, and let's focus on Gabe getting all the help he needs so that every week is a better week for him, and that he becomes stronger and gets games again.
"It will be a combination of under-21 football, but also training sessions with us and training sessions with the under-21s. It's an individual plan for him, for the moment, for the next weeks and months to come to get him to his best level.”
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