Super Eagles striker Victor Boniface may still be a long way from making it back on to the pitch for Werder Bremen despite recently returning from a lengthy spell on the sidelines, Footynaija.com reports.
The Bayer Leverkusen loanee made Bremen’s matchday squad for last weekend’s trip to Stuttgart, but he failed to make it off the bench as Daniel Thioune’s side earned a valiant point away from home.
Many would naturally expect that given Boniface’s return to the squad last week, the next step would be for the Nigeria international to potentially earn some minutes in this weekend’s upcoming Bundesliga against Augsburg.
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However, Thioune has made it clear via a recent media briefing that there are no such guarantees. The Bremen boss emphasized that despite his welcome return from the treatment room, Boniface must prove that he deserves a place in the squad.
“It was important for Victor to return. It worked out well last week. With the return of Marco Friedl and Marco Grüll, I will have to make decisions against one or two players,” Thioune said in quotes revealed by Bild.
“I also have other physically strong strikers in the squad. We’ve had a lot of fun with Salim Musah, for example. Jovan Milosevic has a similar profile. Therefore, I’ll wait for the final training session. Everyone has to earn a place in the squad and playing time.”
While Boniface has returned to the conversion when it comes to squad involvement, Thioune’s latest comments suggest that there may still be doubts about the Super Eagles striker’s readiness to contribute in a competitive game.
Thioune did not categorically rule him out of contention though, so we’ll just have to wait and see how that particular situation develops. Meanwhile, another Super Eagles star on Bremens books, Felix Agu, is currently nursing a muscle injury and is likely to miss the game.
