Trevoh Chalobah is confident he can help fill the void left following Cole Skuse’s knee injury.
Experienced midfielder Skuse will be out for at least two months after damaging knee cartilage in training last week, in what is a major blow to Paul Lambert following the 32-year-old’s impressive start to life under his management.
Chalobah performed well as he dropped into the deep midfield role previously occupied by Skuse for Saturday’s 2-0 loss at Stoke and, while Lambert will bid to strengthen his engine room in January, the teenager believes he can help plug the gap.
“He (Skuse) is a great guy and a very big player for us so it’s obviously a big loss,” Chalobah said. “It’s just one of those things that happens in training and it’s bad luck.
“We’ve got other players who can do the same job and that shows the spirit and togetherness of the team because we are ready to step up.
“I played in that role and I’ve learnt from Skusey and from what the manager said so hopefully I can do that now. I need to be ready at any time to play in any position.
“I speak to Skusey every day and he gives me a lot of advice so I will carry on doing that because he’s helped me improve, but he’s a big loss.
“He will rest and recover and we can’t wait for him to get back.”
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In what is his first season of senior football, the 19-year-old believes he has made big strides despite his side languishing at the foot of the Championship table.
“The new manager coming in has helped us a lot, with his new way of playing, and it’s important for us to acknowledge that, trust him and that means we can go into every game confident,” Chalobah said.
“The position we’re in is not where we would want to be but, from a personal point of view, the experience is brilliant and it’s important I keep playing games. That’s the most important thing for me.
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“Tactically I’ve improved because that’s massive in this league and the players we have played against have been strong and physical which has been a challenge.
“But that’s helped me grow.”
Chalobah has made 21 appearances for Ipswich so far this season, scoring twice, including a last-gasp goal at Swansea in October which earned the Blues their only victory so far during a difficult campaign.
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