Bolton striker Johan Elmander: I’ll play wherever I’m asked to

FA cup, Birmingham City and Bolton Wanderers, Johan Elmander

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Bolton Wanderers striker Johan Elmander is prepared to put the team before himself as he continues to play out of position for Owen Coyle‘s side.

Since the arrival of loanee Daniel Sturridge in January the Swede has been used on the right side of midfield rather than up front but he insists that isn’t a problem as long as the team continue to perform.

“I’ve been playing out on the right of midfield and also had a spell towards the end of the game against Birmingham where I played in the centre,” he told the club’s official website.

“I’m willing to do a job for the team anywhere if the manager asks me to do so.”

Bolton fell to a second consecutive defeat against Birmingham on Saturday, but there was mixed emotions for Elmander who notched his 12th goal of the season in the match.

“It was nice to score but it would have obviously been a lot better had we come away with a win,” Elmander admitted.

“It’s always nice to score goals because that’s what I want to do as a striker.

“A long ball has come forward to the skipper and all the time I’m talking to him. Luckily enough he has seen me and put the ball in front of me so I can half volley it into the net.

“I’ve been practicing a lot of shooting in training because there are always ways in which you can improve.

“I want to score as many goals as I can. I targeted ten goals this season and I’ve passed that mark. Now I hope I can score more and help us move up the league table.”

Despite the defeat to Birmingham the striker insisted that they were determined to regain their focus for the run-in to the season and the FA Cup semi-final against Stoke City.

“We’ll now be doing all we can to pick up three points again West Ham United,” he continued.

“In turn that can help us generate some momentum ahead of the semi-final.

“Personally I don’t find the FA Cup semi-final a distraction at all. I just look ahead to the next game. We’ve been doing well in the league and it would be a shame if we took our eye off the league.

“I’m confident we won’t let our standards slip in the league. We know what we’ve got do between now and the end of the season.”