AFC Wimbledon boss Neal Ardley is likely to stick with the young centre back partnership of Will Nightingale and Adedeji Oshilaja for this weekend’s trip to Morecambe.

The pair have a combined age of 40, with Nightingale being the youngest at 19.

But with on loan signing Jake Goodman on crutches, and Adam Barrett having joined Southend United, Ardley’s options in the centre of defence are limited.

Moreover, Andy Frampton is out for the rest of the season recovering from ankle surgery, while Alan Bennett and Mark Phillips are due back from injury from next week.

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Ardley is unlikely to dip into the transfer market ahead of Monday’s window closure, knowing he can still take on a loan signing from February 9, should the need arise.

But, so impressed was Ardley with the young partnership, he is hoping that will not be necessary.

“Will had one of the best debuts I have seen from a young lad, and people under-estimate how brave it is as a manager to put someone like Will in when you’ve had two defeats on the trot,” Ardley said.

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“But I trusted him, I’ve seen him in training, and I know what this club wants – we want our young players coming through, and I thought Deji had a good game too.”

He added: “If you bring someone in on loan, the club wants you to play him – be it a young lad or senior player, the club don’t want their player sat on the bench.

“You have to make a decision if there is anyone out there who is worthy of bringing in, and I believe Will was ready to come in.

“We’ll try to stick with this partnership for the moment, but if anything should happen we may try to do something.”

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