Rio Ferdinand is a once in a generation player. Often termed a ‘Rolls-Royce’ centre half due to the elegant nature and consummate ease with which he played the game, he has undoubtedly been one of the best defenders in the world this past decade. However, while his style of play and the quality of his performances may serve as an example to all, a particular bugbear of mine has developed over the past few months or so; namely from the media attempting to shoe-horn players into the classy centre-half role, even when it’s clear that their talents are best used elsewhere.
In a day and age where the casual armchair fan often thinks that he knows more than the man in charge of his team, this was bound to happen. The shift between holding man/ centre midfield and centre-half is often played down as merely a minor shift backwards, when in reality; the two roles could not be more different.
As far as I can make out, it merely points down to a need to replace Ferdinand or replicate his success in the role. Ferdinand’s decline has been far more rapid than anyone had previously anticipated and now we are treated to a game of square pegs and round holes when it comes to the ball-playing centre half as the search for Ferdinand’s successor gathers pace.
We have been told time and time again that Jack Rodwell will eventually be pushed back into centre-half the more he matures. The reasoning is clear and concise; once he has garnered enough first-team experience he’ll be able to handle the responsibility that the role requires.
In my eyes, at least, this would be a monumental waste of Rodwell’s talents. He offers far too much energy in the middle of the park, and if anything, I’d push him further forward as he matures.
The assumption that he’ll eventually end up as a ball-playing centre-half began when he first burst onto the scene and flies completely in the face of any of the evidence that his performances have borne out since then. It’s become one of those accepted ‘truths’ of the game. Something that was bandied about as an idea about his future position yonks ago before anyone had ever really seen him play. An opinion formed from a casual glance at his physique.
Phil Jones too has fallen into this very same trap. Far too much has been made of Jones’s performances so far. He’s already been compared to Man Utd legend Duncan Edwards, putting aside the quite frankly baffling comparison, it’s also startlingly premature for a player whose deficiencies have been conveniently covered up and glossed over because he does a noteworthy run forward every now and again.
The fact of the matter is that Ferguson doesn’t trust Jones enough to play at centre half at the moment and that his versatility is a useful commodity to have in reserve, especially when you have the paucity of central midfield options that Man Utd currently have.
Everyone automatically assumes that Jones will revert to being a ball-playing centre-half given time. That may well be the case and this piece will be null and void in a few months or even seasons time, but I simply can’t see it myself.
While he may be the latest in a long line of heroic but ultimately flawed English centre halves, it’s become abundantly clear that while Jones may possess the requisite physique and skill set to be a perfectly serviceable centre back, he simply doesn’t like the task of defending as much as carrying the ball further up field. He thrives in possession and in the midst of the action.