 |
| The Rise and Rise of Ryan “Plastic” Bertrand |
There were a lot of questions as to how
Chelsea could replace arguably their greatest ever Left Back in Ashley
Cole and a few seasons back not many would have thought of Ryan Bertrand
to be that player. A year ago if I told my non-Chelsea supporters that
Ryan Bertrand is going to be a Champions League winner in his first ever
European game they probably would have laughed off or may have been
forgiven for not even knowing who he was.
That
speaks volumes for how this Chelsea youngster has emerged as to one of
the leading young talents in the present Chelsea side. Matured from a
regular loanee to clubs such as Bournemouth and Oldham Athletic, to a
more than capable second choice left back for the Blues. His ability to
play as a Left Back as well as a Left Midfielder is an added bonus and
surely suggests that this young lad can make a huge impact this season.
Joining the club from Gillingham just before
his 16th birthday, Ryan has been out on loan 5 times in his career and
his league debut came under former manager Andre Villas Boas but he
really came under spotlight under present manager Roberto Di Matteo.
There were questions raised when RDM took a huge gamble by giving
Bertrand a start in the Champions League Final but the occasion did not
seem to phase the youngster who matched the stars of Chelsea’s German
opponents Bayern Munich throughout, and only being substituted after 70
minutes due to injury. Bertrand was impressive in the league as well as
he managed to keep out Ashley Cole with a string of good performances
most notably the one at the Emirates where he managed to win many hearts
as well as the Man Of The Match award.
Strengths and Weaknesses
Not many people have a “No Weakness” section
in their WhoScored.com profile, speaks a lot about a young 23 year old
doesn’t it? Well there are a few as I have seen a lot of Ryan to form an
opinion. To start with there have been a lot of questions about his
positioning. He is a very hardworking guy but at times tends to overdo
things a lot which results in him losing possession. The other thing
that comes to my mind has to be that he gives away free kicks a lot. He
is still 23 and still has what 13-14 years of football left in him.
Surely a lot of time to improve.
Now coming to the strengths section the
first thing that comes to my mind is his ability to play as a defender
as well as a midfielder. He showed that in his first European game and
he was impressive if not brilliant. His crossing and his ability to hold
on to the ball makes him a good defender. Although not the tallest guy
when on the field but surprisingly his percentage of aerial duels won is
pretty good when compared to may established defenders. What makes him a
good midfielder? His passing,ball interception and crossing are the 3
key factors that made Di Matteo pick him over the likes of Florent
Malouda and maybe Fernando Torres. A small stat just to show that yes
his passing ability is good- Ryan Bertrand managed 229 passes last
season with a completion rate of 90.39%, 3rd highest in the whole
Chelsea squad.
To summarize, Ryan is
quick,comfortable with the ball. Can support both attack and defense
which makes him more than just a squad player.
Clearly
Ryan has grown as a player over the past year and not just for his club
but for his country as well. Although Team GB were not exactly
impressive during their time in the competition, but Ryan Bertrand stood
out as one of the more solid performers for the British side. Ryan
managed to start all the games for Team GB and unfortunately he could
not add another glorious chapter to his already illustrious career.
Ryan’s performance though was noted by the England head coach Roy
Hodgson and Yes! He has been called for the upcoming friendly against
Italy. If he gets on the field Ryan will make his senior debut.
The coming season: The
coming season is probably the most vital season for Ryan Bertrand.
People are now expecting big things from him after his good display last
season and Bertrand knows that there is no looking back now. Although I
don’t expect him to replace Ashley Cole this season but a few more
games under his belt probably in the League Cup or the Club World Cup
will be massive for the young lad. With more game time, I think we will
see his true talents shine through.
#Shikharr( @ShikharrC )
TweetFollow @CFC360Official
No comments:
Post a Comment