Birmingham City midfielder now 'up to speed' as Walsall approach clarified
Birmingham City midfielder George Hall has made promising progress during his loan at Walsall.
Hall is finally back to full fitness and looking forward to regular first-team football at Walsall following a host of hamstring injuries.
Saddlers head coach and former Blues defender Mat Sadler has admitted Hall had a challenging first few weeks at the club as he suffered an injury setback, but those issues are now hopefully in the rear view mirror for good.
Just 130 minutes have been accumulated during Hall’s loan so far but there are signs he will play regular in the not-too-distant future. Sadler has revealed as much, with Blues’ 20-year-old midfielder on course to break into the starting XI before Christmas.
"We're very lucky to have the eights that we have but we also know we've got someone who is very highly thought of in the game that has taken a little bit of time to get up to speed," Sadler said of Hall to Express & Star.
"He reached his new top speed in training. That might sound like a small thing but for me it's another indication of where he is at physically and psychologically with his body.
"We keep moving forward with him and he is a player that I'm looking forward to seeing how his career progresses. He's got some good players around him that are playing as well and I respect all of those players in those positions but we look forward to seeing more of him."
Walsall, currently second in League Two and three points adrift from leaders Port Vale, have lost just three of their 14 outings so far this season. Ryan Stirk, Charlie Lakin and Jamie Jellis have been the preferred trio in the middle of the park but Hall has given Sadler plenty to ponder in recent training sessions.
The November international break gives the Blues loanee time to build further sharpness, too. Walsall’s approach is to provide Hall the platform to improve steadily, so he could get some game time against AFC Wimbledon or Bromley later this month.