"He is going to be a bit rusty because he is has been out a while but again he is a player that you need in a fighting situation," he says.
"Whether Alan decides to play him in midfield or at right back, Steve won't let you down - and you need those types of players, particularly in games like last Tuesday night when you get someone to rally the others around you and get something out of the game when you are not looking likely to get anything.
"He will be welcomed back by everyone."
Tony is disappointed, though, that Rufus Brevett is out for the season after having surgery last week and he adds:
"It is a choker about Rufus because I think we have missed him big time; over the season he probably was one of our players of the season and when Glenn brought him in people were saying that at 33 he was an old full back to replace an old full back in Nigel Winterburn, but I thought he was outstanding in the way he played the game and approached the relegation battle.
"I am gutted for him; when you get into your 30s you don't recover as quickly as you should do, but he is a fit lad and I am sure we haven't seen the end of him - he will be back, don't worry about that."