Page 15 - 360633 LP236168 A Love Supreme 48pp A5 (April 2022)

up as a career saving adrenaline boost as we try and revive the fortunes of faded players like Alex Pritchard and Patrick Roberts. In the Fleetwood game, the things he did just didn’t come off, although his unproductive yet mesmerising keepy-uppy dribbling is likely to be remembered in an otherwise forgettable display. Then, in his cameo against Crewe, his
the same time, he is maybe more absent minded then all of the others combined. His mind wanders constantly and he is often lackadaisical in possession, gifting the ball to the opposition needlessly. Whilst he has the ability to drift past two players with relative ease, you always wonder if he is going to overdo it and concede possession. He is physically stronger than our captain Corry Evans, works ten times harder and is surprisingly good in the air and therefore, it seems harsh to criticise one of our better players. But, that being said, if his focus and decision making improve, we are looking
at a top player. Matete is the type of player we should have signed in our first season down here and has the potential to develop into a key player for us.
ability to run at a then leggy opposition opened the game up and his goal was well worked, with Jack Clarke and Roberts combining very nicely. This is of course the duality of being a winger; productivity and wastefulness are both sides of an often-frustrating double sided coin. I think the key thing for Roberts going forward is that the creative players around him are on the same wavelength. When Alex Pritchard returns, I think Roberts will develop into a really useful player and we should start to carve out better creative opportunities. He has shown glimpses of the natural ability, which he obviously possesses in abundance, especially against Lincoln.
JACK CLARKE
Likewise, Jack Clarke: flashes of brilliance, yet also very wasteful. His final ball into the box certainly needs work, but his directness has managed to create opportunities out of nothing. When he and Roberts were on either side against Fleetwood, the two compounded any frustration on the terraces due to their end product often being amiss. That said he did grab a great goal in our late rally against The Cod Army and he does look dangerous and gives us width, so he can supplement the other 57 wingers we have at the club...
Jay Matete’s ability on the ball is unrivalled in terms of the other League One midfielders we have had but at
JERMAIN DEFOE
The signing of Jermain Defoe turned out to be a massive waste of time. We simply couldn’t incorporate him into the way we play currently. Despite this, in his limited game time, Defoe did show glimpses that he could have been a useful player for us when he was playing just off Stewart and he bridged the midfield and attack effectively on a couple of occasions. There was a ball played over the top against Crewe which
he would’ve been able to get on the end of five years ago. However, he might’ve got on the end of that very same ball towards the end of that very game as their defenders began to tire. But, in hindsight, this was obviously a poor piece of business. Our worst January signing, by far, circumstantially. I can’t think of a January signing who has dropped us in it, depriving us of attacking options, with just seven games remaining of a season, for no genuine reason. Defoe will still be
a club legend in many people’s eyes, but his return is obviously a dampener on his legacy. At least the club sold a few ‘Defoe 10 ‘shirts.
JAY MATETE
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BY WILL MOONEY