Written by Tom MacGregor for FootballFancast.com: I think it’s fair to say Manchester United have picked up the buy of the season in Mexican sensation Javier Hernandez. Little Pea has been an instant hit in the Premiership after completing a summer move from his homeland. This is reaffirmed with his twenty goals in all competitions for the Red Devils. Hernandez has notched thirteen Premier Leagues goals in a season where he has only completed ninety minutes on five occasions, making his feat even more laudable. Sir Alex Ferguson’s faith in his young striker has paid dividends and shown what a young player can do at a big club if given the opportunity. Sir Alex has also given me the opportunity to raise an interesting question. I wonder if Carlos Vela and Giovani dos Santos had been entrusted in the same way at their clubs as Hernandez has at United whether they may have blossomed similarly?
So what are the main reasons why Hernandez’s countrymen haven’t taken off in the Premiership in the same way as he has. Firstly maybe it’s simply the case that Vela and dos Santos aren’t good enough to be first choice at top Premiership clubs? They have both been in England for some time now and neither has made sufficient steps towards becoming a regular first team player. It’s almost as if they are both seen by their managers as players who have potential, but aren’t ready to realise it yet, so the best thing is to ship them out on loan. In dos Santos’ case it could be argued that surely Barcelona wouldn’t let a product of their youth system go if they thought he had the potential to be a top quality player?
My second rationale could simply be that maybe Vela and dos Santos haven’t been given enough of a chance to show what they can do yet? Giovani has only played ten league games for Spurs since joining them in 2008 and Vela has only played twenty nine league games for Arsenal since 2005, although he did spend the first two years out on loan. If Hernandez had been used as sparingly as his compatriots this season, his talent may still be locked away. It would have been easy for Fergie to stick with the tried and tested Wayne Rooney and Dimitar Berbatov combination and maybe if Michael Owen had been fit all year Hernandez wouldn’t have broken through? However, luckily for Man United fans, his goal scoring qualities have been exposed to us. This has meant Chicharito has been able to score some crucial goals that have guided United to within a point of their record breaking nineteenth title.
Both Giovani and Vela are highly rated within the national team set up with Mexico and they are both clearly talented footballers, so why has it not gone to plan for them in North London? After Giovani’s superb performances for Mexico at the World Cup he may well have thought he would have got his chance at the Lane this season. Both players are still young and could still embark on successful club careers, however whether it is in the capital or elsewhere depends whether Arsene Wenger and Harry Redknapp give them their shot. So is it a case of Arsenal and Tottenham not giving their Mexicans enough opportunity to showcase their ability or is it more a question of the two players not being good enough? It’s a question Arsenal and Spurs fans will be best equipped to answer, so what do you think?
ThisisFutbol.com are seeking new writers to join the team! If you’re passionate about football, drop us a line at “thisisfutbol.com@snack-media.com” to learn more.
To have a peak at the top SEVEN available FREE TRANSFERS this summer, click here.
I think Harry was quoted as saying “If he (Dos Santos) could pass a Night Club as easily as he passes a ball, he’d be a fantastic player.”
in the case of dos santos, it is the fault of redknapp.
he was establishing himself in the first team at barca but only left because of a contract dispute so there isn’t any question about his ability.
redknapp bought 2 (sometimes 3) players per position but he only changes his first 11 in the event of injury. He doesn’t which means a lot of players become alienated
e.g bentley, bostock, dos santos, gunther, walker, pavlyuchenko, bent, taarabt
*he doesn’t rotate which means a lot of players become alienated*
Rubbish mate, Dos Santos just wants to party and has been a complete failure on loan in Spain, rather throws your argument in the water. When he grows up he might make it but until then he is an untrustworthy liability.
Bently has been a failure at Birmingham, Bostock is not better than what we have, Dos Santos has been a failure on loan, no Premier League club were even interested in Gunther so clearly not good enough yet, Pavlyuchenko is lazy and can’t keep hold of the ball, his control is terrible, needs to be sold, Bent didn’t fit into our system and missed open goals, he needs to be the big fish in a little pond and Tarrabt won’t pass to team mates, you can get away with it in the Championship but not the Premier League, especially if you want to challenge for anything.
There is no point playing players who are simply not good enough.
have you ever questioned how it is they were performing so well at other clubs until they came to spurs?
bentley was the best RM in the league bar ronaldo when he came. but then only played when lennon was injured.
bostock was playing championship level at 15 yrs old and stagnated because he didnt play enough top level games
pavlyuchenko was averaging higher than a goal ever 2 games but became second fiddle to defoe, keane and crouch
bent is the 2nd highest scoring player in the league after rooney since 2005 but he couldnt make it at spurs?
taarabt’s quality is there for all to see now he has left spurs. never really got a chance to show it there and kranjcar is another who is rotting on the bench now.
you say they arent good enough to play but how do you expect them to improve when the majority werent given extended runs to prove themselves?
It is all about playing them in their positions – behind front striker, and both Spurs and Arsenal cannot afford to give these players extended runs in their favoured positions at the expensive of the regulars. In Spurs’s case, Van Der Vaart plays in there, and scores about 1 goal in 2 games. Dos Santos is clearly not a goal scorer, and would have to play a blinder to make up for the lack of goals. When Vdv is injured, then there is a queue of strikers waiting for a spot in the team, and are all more senior than Dos Santos. The only other alternative is to play on the wing, and Dos Santos really does not play well there. Dos Santos takes up a squad place next season, and therefore has to make way.
tl;dr
And Vela is shit. Why give him a run in the team if he can’t even get a game at farking West Brom. Therefore he is shit, sell him in the summer.
The biggest difference between Hernandez and Dos Santos and Vela is that Hernandez was a regular first team player before Man United signed him, while Vela and Dos Santos went to big clubs when they were relatively young.
They are all great players, they are all awesome for Mexico, but when they get to the biggest stage, experience counts, and only Hernandez has that.
Also the position they play is different from Hernandez, they are more complete players, while Hernandez(not taking anything away from him) has an specific set of skills that make him great, mainly finishing, pace, movement, and timing. Both Arsenal and Tottenham have players that are very similar to GDS and Vela so they get less opportunities.
I have seen Dos Santos and Vela score goals Hernandez can only dream of scoring, the talent is there, and they are ALL still young, if they fulfill their potential, watch out.