Neil Redfearn says that those saying Leeds United should sell Alex Mowatt are plain wrong and the Whites should be investing and trusting in the midfielder.
Mowatt shone under Redfearn in the 2014/15 season and was handed the Player of the Year award at the club as a result.
He was tipped for big things and linked with several Premier League clubs, but Mowatt's form nosedived last season and he has struggled for playing time in the current campaign when head coach Garry Monk has a full squad at his disposal.
With Mowatt's contract at Leeds running out next summer, some Whites fans have called for the midfielder to be offloaded, but Redfearn is in the other camp.
He believes that Mowatt's form was always going to be inconsistent due to his age and has called on Leeds to back the 21-year-old.
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"It surprises me when people say they want to get rid of Mowatt and all this – it's a load of rubbish", Redfearn said on Radio Yorkshire.
"What do you want to get rid of a good young player for? Work with him, develop him, he'll come again.
"This is what young players do. They start off, do great, but they are not established.
"It is the people who are established that you can expect to do great week in, week out, because their margins of error should be less.
"Young players are a little bit different because they are learning their job.
"Sometimes they run out of speed, they run out of legs, they run out of strength.
"You've got to be patient with them."
Mowatt is a product of the club's esteemed academy set-up and has clocked up 15 appearances in all competitions for the Whites this season, though he is still awaiting his first goal.
