Inigo Calderon has admitted that Shaq Forde is “not having a good time” at Bristol Rovers currently after the 20-year-old was sent off in the Gas’ defeat to Wycombe Wanderers on Tuesday evening.
Rovers’ three-match unbeaten run in League One was brought to an abrupt end at Adams Park in midweek as Calderon’s side were beaten 2-0 by The Chairboys.
The Gas had impressed in the first half but were unable to keep Mike Dodds’ high-flying side at bay after the break with second-half goals from Cameron Humphreys and Dan Udoh proving to be the difference between the two sides over the course of the 90 minutes.
To make matters worse for Rovers, Forde was shown his second red card of the season as he was given his marching orders following a heavy challenge on Luke Leahy. The 20-year-old could have no complaints about the referee’s decision and neither could the Gas’ head coach who admitted supporters are not seeing the best of the former Leyton Orient man currently.
“I spoke with him, he has to learn,” Calderon said in his post-match press conference. “He’s not having a good time, that’s football, that’s life but obviously he has to learn because I said to him, he’s young, he has to learn to deal with the bad situations because obviously doing that is not the way to learn.
“He knows it’s not good enough. He’s the first one, obviously he knows that. I said to him, in front of the boys, he has to learn. He’s having a bad time, he’s not performing, he’s a better player than the player we have seen at the moment but that’s football, that’s life.
“Like I say, you have to be calm and work harder. I think he’s working but obviously, he’s not calm.”
The game had already slipped through Rovers’ grasp long before Forde’s red card. Humphreys’ opener appeared to knock the stuffing out of Calderon’s side who never quite managed to match their first-half standards after the break. By the time Udoh found the net, it felt like the Gas had no hope of salvaging a point at Adams Park.
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Although The Chairboys have had an impressive season so far and currently sit second in League One, the Rovers head coach felt his side made it too easy for Wycombe. While he was disappointed with all aspects of his team’s performance, he was insistent that he, the team and supporters should expect bumps along the way this season.
“I don’t think we were good in any aspect of the game, offensively, defensively, set-pieces, fighting, running,” Calderon said. “I don’t think it was our day and it is very difficult to get something in a difficult place Wycombe. So we have to learn and learn quickly, but it was not good enough today.
“As I say, I think we did nearly everything bad today. It’s not one person, one system or one aspect of the game. I don’t think we were good. But listen, you have to expect sometimes a bump in the road and you have to understand that you are coming to a difficult place, a team who are in a good position for a reason.
“They don’t need to do anything special to create. The first goal, it was not them in control, we were in control then they got the ball and punished us and then it was more difficult. It was unexpected because I was expecting to get something but you cannot lose your head because I think that’s part of the process.”