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Portsmouth of England coach, Danny Cowley is raining encomiums on the club’s Nigerian-born duo of Gavin Bazunu and Miguel Azeez, as he says they are both instrumental in his process of rebuilding the team and boosting their promotion hopes, megasportsarena.com reports.
The Pompey gaffer, who was recently named manager of the month in the English League One, took another look at the past few months since his arrival at Fratton Park and admitted that Bazunu and Azeez have contributed to the massive turnaround that has come for the club.
He noted that their buoyant results of recent are in stark contrast with a major downturn that hit them in mid-October, when they were beaten 4-0 at home by Ipswich Town, had recorded just one win in 10 games and slumped to 17th on the log.
Cowley had only been in charge since March and it shows how quickly things can change within a short while, as Ipswich, the side that trounced them at Fratton Park, have since dispensed with their manager.
On the other hand, Portsmouth’s turn in form has led to a rise up the table and November Manager of the Month award to boot, but the gaffer is not taking the accolades all alone, as he singled out Bazunu and Azezz for praise among the shining lights in his resurgent squad.
While Bazunu is a fast-rising goalkeeper, who is already Ireland’s number one, Azeez, is a budding midfielder on loan from Arsenal, and Cowley says one big thing likes about both of them is their high work rate, desire to learn and their natural ability.
Cowley posited: “Gavin can be whatever he wants to be. He’s an outstanding goalkeeper and an even better human being. He has an elite mindset and is so focused and driven.
“He wakes up every day wanting to improve, and it’s been a pleasure and a privilege to have him with us in this short period.
“Gavin was at Rochdale last season so he’s had a bit more experience. We look forward to him continuing to do really well for us and himself, and we’re cited for his future.
“For Miguel, it’s his first loan. He is gaining experience by the day and it’s been a brilliant stepping stone for him in his education.
“His technical ability and his athleticism will give him every opportunity to have a great career. He’s done really, really well.
“He’s another one who is incredibly driven, with an outstanding level of focus and he’s a student of the game.
“He always wants to learn, develop and improve. He’s fought his way into the team, and good on him This is what young players need. They need to be exposed to first-team football.
“A lot of these elite young players have only known success after success because they were often the best players in their youth careers and in age-group football.
“It’s great for them to come out on loan into senior football for the first time where they don’t always get it all their own way. It develops their coping strategies and their resilience to go on and really push on in their careers.”
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