Alex Bruce's verdict on the first Rotherham United outing of Klaidi Lolos
The player has been in the treatment room with a thigh complaint
Alex Bruce believes there is more to come from Klaidi Lolos after handing the loan attacker his long-awaited Rotherham United debut this weekend.
A second-half substitute's appearance was the first senior action in more than six months for the 26-year-old who was hit by a thigh issue soon after his September 1 deadline-day arrival from Peterborough United.
In the injury absence of Fabio Tavares and George Sebine, Lolos came on in the 53rd minute at Fleetwood Town and came close to scoring with a header that went just wide during a 2-0 League Two loss.
"He's been out a long time, said boss Alex Bruce. "I didn't have any other centre-forwards to put on to try to freshen things up. Klaidi did okay, and he will get better."
Teen loanee Sebine is due back tomorrow from parent club Huddersfield Town where he has been receiving treatment on a calf problem he picked up in only his second Millers outing.
After missing six matches, he is unlikely to feature in the home clash with Newport County on Tuesday night and may not be quite ready for the Saturday visit to AESSEAL New York Stadium of Shrewsbury Town.
"I'm looking forward to having George with us again," said Bruce. "When he's going to be fit to take part in any games, I don't know. I'll have to wait and see how he looks."
The defeat at Highbury Stadium was a fourth consecutive one for Rotherham. Disillusioned fans sang at players 'You're not fit to wear the shirt' and also chanted that they wanted to see an end to chairman Tony Stewart's reign.
"That happens when you've had a tough time," said Bruce, referring to three previous troubled campaigns before he took the hot-seat as well as the present poor run. "I've been in football long enough to realise that.
"A good result can change things very quickly. If we have one good result and it leads on to another, we can get going upwards again."
In the build-up to the Town encounter, he had urged his defenders to reduce the number of square passes they were making.
"I felt as if we went forward a little bit more," he said. "We asked questions of Fleetwood's backline. We just didn't have that little bit of lady luck in front of goal. We had a couple of chances that just went past the post. The couple of chances Fleetwood had fell in our net. That was pretty much the story of the game."
Meanwhile, prominent Rotherham supporter Kev Johnson - the man behind the successful 'Millers Legends' charity functions - has launched an online petition calling for Stewart to sell the club.
He praised the chairman for his huge contribution during 18 years at the helm but says the time for regime change has come.