Josh Coburn has been building quite the reputation for himself at Bristol Rovers, but first-team coach Andy Mangan believes the best is yet to come in the blue and white quarters from the Middlesbrough loanee.
Deadline day signing Coburn was made to wait until October to make his Gas debut, but since then he has notched five goals and an assist in just nine League One appearances, forming a menacing partnership with Rovers' top scorer Aaron Collins.
The numbers are impressive, but what has been so impressive about the striker – who celebrated his 20th birthday on Tuesday – is how refined his all-around game is at such a young age. He has natural size, speed and strength, but his instincts in the penalty area are also first-class and, at League One level at least, he appears the complete package.
But Mangan, a striker himself in his playing days, believes Gasheads have not yet seen the best of the Middlesbrough prospect, who is on a season-long loan in BS7.
"Josh is a great player," Mangan said. "He is far better than me, so I just admire him and try to work with him every day.
"Josh is here to learn a different side of the game that he’s not been exposed to before. He is playing every week, he’s having to get on with a new set of players, he’s having to get on with a new set of players, he’s having to play a new style of football than he’s used to, and he is doing fantastically.
"There is still so much more to come from Josh. We haven’t seen the best of him yet.
"He’s still getting fit because he was injured for a period of time at the start of the season, so Josh will get better and better and better.
"The likes of Aaron Collins have been great also with Josh. If we play three up front with Harry Anderson or Antony Evans or Scotty (Sinclair) or Ryan Loft or John Marquis, we’ve got great competition for places.
"Josh has done great and no doubt he will do even better as the season goes on."
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