Mick McCarthy tells Leeds United loanee what he needs to do to get back in his Blackpool team

Since starting in McCarthy’s first game in charge, which was the FA Cup defeat to Southampton, Poveda has seen just nine minutes of action in the subsequent three league games.

The Leeds United loanee didn’t even come off the bench against Rotherham United at the weekend, despite the Seasiders chasing a much-needed first victory since October.

When asked why Poveda didn’t feature during the scrappy goalless draw, McCarthy told The Gazette: “It wasn’t the game for him on Saturday, that’s for sure.

“He needs to keep training like he wants to be in the team and I’ll use him. But that wasn’t the game for him.

“He’s trained well. He looked bright and lively this morning and that’s what we need from all of them.

“What has been really good with the lads that haven’t played, like Jud (Jordan Thorniley), who hasn’t been in the team, he comes in on Saturday and he was excellent. Josh was left out, he comes on and makes his impact on Tuesday night.

“It’s going to be hard for everyone to play all the games, although I might have to make a consideration on Jerry (Yates) because he’s the only one we’ve got at the minute.

“But you’ve just got to keep training and when you train out there, make sure you’re catching my eye by training properly and then you’ve got a chance of being in the team.”

Poveda’s absence has been a recent source of debate among fans, given McCarthy praised the forward for his ability not long after joining.

But since then, the 23-year-old has found himself on the bench.

"I think he wasn’t that consistent and I don’t think he’d been that good and it can be difficult with loan players,” the veteran boss said at the start of February.

“They come in and if they’re not playing, they think ‘why should I be here?’ and it affects the performance.

“I think when they went to Spain, he’s really knuckled down and what I’ve seen of him in training is different class.

“He really is a good footballer. He’s got a lot to offer us.”