Buckley-Ricketts scored City’s third in the 3-0 win over Colchester United after an early own goal and Demeaco Duhaney’s strike had put the Blues in control of the match.
With three strikers on the bench, the 19-year-old knew the pressure was on to find the back of the net or risk being replaced by Lukas Nmecha, Joe Hardy or Lorenzo Gonzalez.
He said: “Competition is very high and there’s a lot of good players in the squad. When I do get the chance I’ve got to give the coaches a problem and make it hard for them not to select me even when we have so many strikers available.”
The striker’s goal came from a clever free-kick routine in which Brahim Diaz set up to cross the ball before darting it back to Buckley-Ricketts who had peeled into the space in front of the defence.
It’s something he wants to see he and his teammates do more of.
“We know what’s going to happen and everyone is connected on the pitch and that goal has come about from working closely together on the training ground to create those chances,” said Buckley-Ricketts.
Although he remained an unused substitute in Wednesday night’s UEFA Youth League defeat to Salzburg, Buckley-Ricketts believes the disappointment has had a galvanising effect on City’s young squad.
He said: “It brought us together a lot more because the way we went out was almost a lottery. We know that we could have played better but as a group rather than individuals. If we’re all up for it, like today, then we can be successful.”
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