Nottingham Forest legend Garry Birtles has hailed the impact that Joe Worrall has had in an attempt to replace the injured Michael Dawson.
Birtles, who won the European Cup with Forest back in the days, recently praised Worral in his column for the Nottingham Post for stepping up to the plate when Dawson has been nursing his injury.
Birtles said: “Dawson has been missed. We all know what he brings and what he can do.
“But I think Joe Worrall deserves a lot of credit for really showing what he is capable of this season. Him and Dawson had established a really good partnership; they worked very well together and were superb earlier in the season.
“But equally, I think you’ve got to give Worrall praise on his own. We’ve seen his individual quality while Michael has been out injured. It would have been easy for him to drop off a bit without Dawson alongside him, but instead he’s really stepped up to the plate.”
The rock at the back
Worrall has been a regular at the back for Forest this season. He has played 15 Championship games so far, also assisting once. The 22-year-old also has two appearances to his name in the League Cup.
The Englishman has played every game this season, starting at centre-back. In the first few games of the season, Worrall started alongside the experienced Michael Dawson in the club’s 4-2-3-1 shape.
But former Tottenham man, Dawson, has not played for the club since Forest’s 3-2 win over Stoke back in August. Before that, the former England international has played as many as nine times for the club.
Since Dawson has been sidelined, Worrall has played alongside Tobias Figueredo in the centre-back position. The Portuguese played four times in the league so far.
TIF Tactics
Worrall’s influence at the back for the City Ground-based side can’t be underestimated. Ever since Dawson sustained the injury, Forest have let in only six goals in the league and have played just as many games too.
As per WhoScored, he has won the second-highest number of aerial duels per game for the club (3), which is as many as Dawson himself. Not just that, but Worrall has also made the fourth-highest number of interceptions per too at 1.2 per game. He is only second behind Figueredo when it comes to the highest number of clearances per game.
But the Arsenal academy graduate boasts of having made the most number of blocks this season for the club.
These numbers are a clear reflection of the impact he has made. At the tender age of 22, Worrall has a bright future ahead. And he will be a very important player for the club this season.