I got questioned by David who asked, ‘Am I calling Joelinton slow?’ | OneFootball

In the comments section of The Mag after the Bromley game, I said that we struggled as the three Newcastle United midfielders were of a similar pace.

I got questioned by David who asked, ‘Am I calling Joelinton slow?’

I’m not, but let me explain my comment, and why I made it.

In my football lifetime, I’ve watched numerous players make a living out of being lightning quick. Think of Owen, Bale and also Mickey Quinn.

What! Quinny, quick? Yes. Quinny was quick over the first first yards and that in football terms is huge. It is so important that it’s a major factor in making the grade or not, at academy level.

Let me explain, using my parental experience as an example. My lad played for a local pro club at academy level. Him and three of his mates always stood out as the top players. One in particular used to dominate the games. He was built like a brick …. at 12 years old. The four lads dominated everything.

Every now and again during the training sessions they used to get tested using these electronic gates that measured their reactions and sprint times at 5, 10 and 30 metres. The results were never really shared and nobody bothered much. Fast forward to handing out the contracts and these results would prove pivotal in who was being offered a 16-18 contract.

My lad had left by this point but the other three remained. The big one was told “no” as he “did the wrong type of running.” His dad was furious and got him to wear a GPS for one match. He covered about 10k and it was the most on the team, but it was at too slow a pace apparently – the wrong type of running!

I spoke to the academy director years later and he said my lad would have been told no too, if he hadn’t left already. I reminded him that he was in the top twenty nationally for cross country and was as fit as a fiddle but he said they wanted different athletes. They wanted kids like a particular lad, who was literally horrendous football wise but could run like the wind. He was amazing in any kind of sprint but not a great footballer. Maybe similar to Owen who was amazingly quick but certainly not the best footballer I’ve ever seen. He made a living out of his pace but once it went, then he didn’t last long did he.

So there’s the background to my “pace” comment. There’s the ability to run forever that Longstaff has and then there’s the pace Tonali and Bruno have, that is all about a few yards.

A few years ago I remember chatting to a bloke who tested our players at the Uni in Newcastle. He said from 95/96 Warren Barton was the fittest. And the more technical ones like Ginola weren’t half as fit as him. I’m guessing Longstaff has similar numbers to Centre Parting. But what use is the ability to run forever while stood on the edge of the Bromley box, especially if your technical skills aren’t the best. So Sean looked poor on Sunday as his “skills” – his box to box engine, were not required.

It’s all about getting those pegs to fit in the right holes – just like Eddie Howe said recently. The midfield needs to be a blend of pace, endurance and skill.

The three first choice players we have currently filling those holes are as good as anything in this league. And it’s the same all over the pitch. We have different players offering different things.

I remember Troy Deeney talking about playing Chelsea and he said he knew he had approximately two seconds from receiving the ball to being challenged by Kante. We now have Tonali playing that role – the man who recorded the fastest sprint in the Champions League last year.

Apparently our fastest player is Livramento. The fastest player with the ball is Willock. The fittest? Longstaff will be top three at least.

It’s all about the balance and we are currently beautifully balanced…but getting that balance isn’t easy, is it?