YORK City manager Neal Ardley has revealed that the club received enquiries from English Football League clubs for defender Tyler Cordner in the EFL January transfer window.

Ardley confirmed that interest had been shown in defender Cordner, who has recently been out-of-favour in North Yorkshire, but no clubs had followed up on their initial enquiries into the 25-year-old’s availability.

The City boss also confirmed why Cordner had been absent from Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Maidenhead United, with it being a tactical decision, and provided a positive update on Dan Batty’s return to full fitness.

“Agents are always going to put players out there if the player isn’t playing,” Ardley admitted.

“People asked about him, but nobody ever followed it up, we never had an offer for Tyler.

“We never had an offer so there was no discussion to be had, Tyler wasn’t in the squad but it goes back to my beef with the league in only having five subs.

“Most teams on Tuesday night didn’t have a goalie on the bench, it’s just so tinpot for me compared to what it should be.

“I don’t know why I’m seeing clubs further down the pyramid affecting our level, but I have to look at what I want from the bench.

“When I put a bench together, I want at least two forwards and one winger or two wingers and one forward, depending on whose on the pitch.

“I ask my front players, front two or front three, to go hard for 65 minutes.

“When the dynamic element of their game starts to fade, I’ll look at brining on fresh legs.

“That’s three of my five gone, when you’ve got the options behind and don’t have cover in central midfield, Dan Batty is now fit and he caves into that.

“Then you look at the back, for me I looked at it and thought that if we had an injury at centre-halve, Crookesy can slither across, but we have no cover at full-back.

"If our full-back got injured, we had no cover, but Ducky (Michael Duckworth) covers both sides.

“There’s your logic behind it, it’s not that I don’t fancy Tyler or that Tyler isn’t good enough, I’ve just got to cover all of these scenarios and that is how a manager has to think.

“Depending on what shape we play, it might change on Saturday, Crookesy has a split on his eye and that could come open in the first minute.”

Ardley also provided a positive update on Batty’s return to match action, with the midfielder yet to pick up any minutes for City since October.

The York boss also confirmed that Thierry Latty-Fairweather is back in training following his recent family bereavement, with the recent arrival of Danny Amos providing valuable competition at left-back.

“I’ve got no qualms about that, I’m looking at the games now and am thinking about what games Dan Batty could affect the best.

“Is it Southend away, may it be Dorking at home? I think Dan Batty now is ready for 60 to 70 minutes at least, he’s trained and his numbers are really good, his data is really good and his sharpness has come back in training.

“For me now, it’s a case of me using him when I see fit. Whether if it that is Saturday or Tuesday, I’ve got no qualms if everybody is training well or what shape we’re using with rotating the squad.

“(Latty-Fairweather) is training, he’s back in.

“Danny (Amos) has come in now so we’ve got competition for places, I’ve had loads of chats with Thierry about his own game and I do extra crossing with him.

“It’s the stuff that he needs to try and develop, he’s only a young lad, but it’s about the number and the stats that he produces in training.

“He’s a very athletic player, I’ve said to him that if I had his pace, then I would have played for England!

“We need to keep him ready for when his opportunity comes and we need him in a game, but at the same time we’re trying to develop him and make him a better player at the same time, because he’s young.”

Zanda Siziba has also been absent as of late, with Ardley entertaining loan offers for the winger, but the City boss confirmed that Siziba had opted to stay put with what had been offered to him.

“We’ve spoken to him about whether that would benefit him.

“Maz Kouhyar has played a lot of games, but if you look at Zanda then he is a talented boy.

“We have ten games with Saturday’s and Tuesday’s, does the manager trust you without the ball, that kind of stuff to go with his ability on the ball.

“We try to encourage him to do that for his own development.

“At the moment, nothing has come up that he has wanted to do.

“We’ve put it in front of him so he’s just training, he’s training hard, but that opportunity, whether if that comes with us or somewhere else, he needs games.”