Former Newcastle United player Mick Martin believes that midfielder Jonjo Shelvey is key to unleashing new signing Miguel Almiron.
Sean Longstaff came off injured in the 2-0 defeat to West Ham on Saturday and he is likely to be sidelined for a few games, so Martin reckons that the 27-year-old is the player to take his place – and get the most out of their Paraguayan playmaker.
Martin says that Shelvey’s range of passing is what is going to get Almiron playing at this best, mainly because he is one of few players in the Premier League who is capable of picking out an excellent pass to give their teammates a great chance of scoring.
“You know you’ve got a player like Miguel Almiron and he’s quick as hell. You need to play the ball to him nice and early so he can get away from people. He can’t wait for the ball, but Jonjo Shelvey is one of the few players at Premier League level that can do that. I’m not saying he will find him every time,” he told the Chronicle.
“But all he needs to do is find once or twice over the course of the game and you have a chance scoring a goal. At that level, it is so important.
“Shelvey can pick a pass. Isaac Hayden doesn’t do that, Mo Diame doesn’t do that and Sean Longstaff is a very good player but he’s injured now. When Jonjo is in the team he will create those chances for you.”
OPINION
Having Longstaff sidelined for however many games is no doubt a huge loss for both Rafa Benitez and the team, but perhaps his injury is a blessing in disguise to some of his teammates – namely Shelvey. He was once at the heart of the success of the team, but recently he has been pushed down the pecking order to the point where he was not even making the match day squad. This is unusual for a player with Shelvey’s experience, but what was not unusual was how well the likes of Longstaff were playing. Like Martin has pointed out, Shelvey possesses some of the passing ability that some of his teammates may not, and this is what makes him stand out from the rest – and it is a good case to why he should be started in Longstaff’s place. Shelvey had to resort to playing for the under-23s in order to get some game time, but this is the perfect opportunity to show Benitez what he has been missing recently.
