My unpopular opinion on Danny Rose - The Spurs loanee who's been getting a lot of stick
Why unpopular you may ask?
Simply because I believe Danny Rose deserves a more credit than criticism, yet, in truth, it seems that he attracts far more of the latter than the former.
Perhaps because he played a season in that 3rd Division teams’ colours or because he came from Spurs. I don’t know.
All I do is judge a player on the way he plays. I know, sacrilege! For me he’s getting better by the game and is starting to show the consistency and effectiveness that Bruce brought him in for and looks really good at left-back in the “four.”
He's been solid in our two games back and pushed Saint-Maximin close in my opinion for Man of the Match in the 1-1 draw against Villa on Wednesday night. Remember too he was involved in two clean sheets in a row before the break vs Burnley and Southampton (0-0 and 0-1). So perhaps he deserves a bit more credit than he gets?
But it seems to me that the popular opinion is to slate him and he’s even been fat shamed by fans. That of course came from a photo published after the pre-return friendly with ‘Boro. Believe me though as an amateur photographer, you can always find an image that doesn’t flatter.
For me he actually looks lean now and has played both the 90 minutes in the games so far and just seems to be getting stronger and more influential with each passing minute. Recent reports have suggested Spurs will cash in for £5m as he's nearly 30 and in last year of his deal with them.
It’s actually his 30th birthday on the 2nd July! But 30 is no age for a defender particularly one with international and big game experience. Right now I’d pay £5m for him - the fee that's been mooted now he's in the last year of his deal at Spurs - whether or not the takeover goes through.
If Miggy had been on his game, Rose would have got an assist vs Villa and he defended well throughout which is the first requirement of his job. Plus, his great overlapping run on Sunday (which saw him clock the highest speed in the entire match that day!) was also key to Ritchie's goal, giving him the space to line up a shot the flew past Henderson to double our lead.
Right now, Rose is for me as important as anyone in the squad. If we’re going to continue to play a “four” then he’s an automatic choice. Ok, I can hear some of you saying he’s the only choice but his ability to play so well at left-back has no doubt allowed Bruce to go to a “four.”
Remember too that he’s been capped 29 times for his country as well as representing GB in the 2012 Olympics. You don’t get to do that unless you’re worthy and therein lies another factor that might just help NUFC out.
It’s a huge game this weekend against Man. City in the Cup and we need players who have been there and done it. Danny Rose is that kind of player and his experience, calmness and knowledge could well help us big style on Sunday.
