Flynn dismisses Bony signing, but relishes Hammers showdown
MIKE Flynn has dismissed any talk of Newport County making a transfer coup by signing former Swansea City striker Wilfried Bony.
The Ivorian is currently training with the Exiles, and was recently pictured with Flynn and striker Tristan Abrahams.
Bony is currently a free agent since being released by the Swans in May and has been training with County to keep up his fitness levels.
Speaking after the Carabao Cup penalty shootout win at Gillingham, Flynn hailed the impact of the 30-year-old on the rest of his squad, adding that his strikers have particularly benefited from his presence around the training ground.
“He’s been brilliant around the place. The boys have been learning a lot from him,” he said.
“He’s only been in for two days so far but the application he’s shown has been excellent. He’s very professional. He’s been a joy.
“He’s been a big help to the strikers as well, taking them to the side and having a few words with them.
“It just goes to show what a top professional he’s been.”
It remains to be seen where Bony will go next, he has been linkwed to clubs in Italy and Turkey, but Flynn has ruled out a sensational move to Rodney Parade.
Asked about the possibility of Bony pulling on a County shirt, Flynn replied: “Yeah, in training!
“No, let’s be honest, he’s 30 years of age and you can tell the quality he’s got.
“I’m not going to say we’ve got a chance because I think that’s doing Wilfried a disservice. I know for a fact that he could still play at a much higher level.
“But it’s great to have him around. Tristan Abrahams spent a lot of time with him and I think that’s really important.
“It has really opened the eyes of some of them – the mentality of him in training, the way he went about his business – and told them they have a long way to go.”
Abrahams was on target in County’s 2-2 draw at Gillingham and also netted the clinching penalty in the 4-1 shootout win.
The victory gave the Exiles a mouthwatering second round tiw against Premier League West Ham on the week starting August 26.
And the win at Priestfield brought a smile to Flynn’s face as he said: “I’m delighted with the way the team came back and the amount of fight they showed, because we wanted to stay in the cup. We value it,” he said.
“It’s not a priority and I’ve been honest about that but I think we showed how much we want to be in the cup.
“In the past we didn’t have the squad to do it but this is an important win against what I think will be a decent League One team.
“We kept going to the end, kept our unbeaten run going and we’re in the next round. I’m delighted.”