Lee Johnson has explained why he left central midfielder James Bailey out of his team for both games this week after praising his performance at Colchester on Easter Monday.

"Bails is technically very good and has everything I want from a player in that role," said the Reds head coach.

"His range of passing is very good. But the tactical, physical and mental sides need to be improved.

"I knew he would have a lot of room at Colchester because of their formation and he played very well.

"But I put Ben Pearson in defensive midfield for the next two games because I felt I needed the energy in a one-on-one duel."