The Marvelous Nakamba Thread | Page 12 | Vital Football

The Marvelous Nakamba Thread

I watched a school U11 district match and there was a kid representing Erdington who stood out like a beacon. He had a great touch but the thing that impressed me was his change of pace. He collected the ball at walking pace and then went up through the gears. Kids of his age usually have two speeds , stopped or a hundred miles an hour. This kid was outstanding. I never heard that he made it at a professional level. What happens to these kids?
 
ironside said:
I watched a school U11 district match and there was a kid representing Erdington who stood out like a beacon. He had a great touch but the thing that impressed me was his change of pace. He collected the ball at walking pace and then went up through the gears. Kids of his age usually have two speeds , stopped or a hundred miles an hour. This kid was outstanding. I never heard that he made it at a professional level. What happens to these kids?
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What happens to them? many things, Girls, Parents overwhelming pressure on them to do well. My best player used to average 3 goals a game and he went to Kiddy Harriers where they decided he wasn't tall enough and played him in midfield. then his Dad died and he lost the will ended up as a PE teacher. You'd have had money on him making at least semi-pro the number of goals he scored at U/14 was incredible. Needless to say, they won us the league without losing a game all season.
Even kids that are 110% dedicated don't make it unless they are at a top club at 7 or 8 forget it
 
Whaddya reckon - another half a season until the Kante-esque comparisons start being made?

Two fab games on the bounce for my boy :)
 
He was bloody brilliant last night. I also have an admiration for his absolute commitment to not trying to do anything remotely offensive minded with the ball. Anytime he has a chance to shoot or cross you can see him looking for someone to pass to. If he ever has to take a penalty he'll try and pass to Jack.
 
JW1985 said:
He was bloody brilliant last night. I also have an admiration for his absolute commitment to not trying to do anything remotely offensive minded with the ball. Anytime he has a chance to shoot or cross you can see him looking for someone to pass to. If he ever has to take a penalty he'll try and pass to Jack.
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You're probably right mate lol but that's likely been coached into him as a DM - he knows his raison d'etre is to stop counter attacks and win the ball back if we lose possession which is pretty hard to do if you're 80 yards up the pitch :)
 
JW1985 said:
He was bloody brilliant last night. I also have an admiration for his absolute commitment to not trying to do anything remotely offensive minded with the ball. Anytime he has a chance to shoot or cross you can see him looking for someone to pass to. If he ever has to take a penalty he'll try and pass to Jack.
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The new Kanté, or better still Makelele... give the boy time and he'll boss the Premier League over the coming years. Alongside the Supers, we'll have the best midfield since the Keane/Scholes/Beckham/Giggs era :wahey::utv:
 
JuanPabloAngel said:
The new Kanté, or better still Makelele... give the boy time and he'll boss the Premier League over the coming years. Alongside the Supers, we'll have the best midfield since the Keane/Scholes/Beckham/Giggs era :wahey::utv:
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Well that's some high bar but there's some young talent in our midfield for sure - we've just gotta keep em ...
 
Villan57 said:
What happens to them? many things, Girls, Parents overwhelming pressure on them to do well. My best player used to average 3 goals a game and he went to Kiddy Harriers where they decided he wasn't tall enough and played him in midfield. then his Dad died and he lost the will ended up as a PE teacher. You'd have had money on him making at least semi-pro the number of goals he scored at U/14 was incredible. Needless to say, they won us the league without losing a game all season.
Even kids that are 110% dedicated don't make it unless they are at a top club at 7 or 8 forget it
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A number of years ago I read a book by Paolo DiCanio, which he wrote at the end of his playing career (before he turned into a raving looney manager). He dedicated a lot of time in the book to talking about all the players he grew up with in Italy that were far more talented than he was. Yet most never got near the professional game, let alone the heights that he reached. Like you alluded to, so many things can go wrong in a kid's life, alcohol, drugs, loss of a loved one, getting in with bad people, the list is endless. For some it's just about desire and for others it's an inability to prioritize. You look at people like Vardy and others who entered the professional game late after beating around in lower leagues, and I bet they'd be the first to admit that they didn't have the requisite skill-set, or work-ethic, or lifestyle-choices to make it at a younger age.
And as for over-indulgent parents, I can't tell you the number of young men that I came across while coaching here in the US that had either quit or stopped trying because they were sick and tired of Dad (or Mom) and the pressure they exerted.
 
Somebody mentioned Harry Forrester in a thread recently. I had a look at him on Youtube. Good grief he has skills. Dribbling wise he makes Jack look a bit ordinary. Has fast reactions, is quick, and when he runs with the ball it's like it's glued to his toes. Has a good shot on him as well.

He's playing in California at the moment. But you look at his career, and he's never stayed at a club for long. It's as though he enjoys his game but doesn't take it too seriously and doesn't want to get too committed. Fair enough, that's how he is, but it's a bit of a waste.
 
Bonker said:
You're probably right mate lol but that's likely been coached into him as a DM - he knows his raison d'etre is to stop counter attacks and win the ball back if we lose possession which is pretty hard to do if you're 80 yards up the pitch :)
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He's doing exactly what I want from a DM
 
Given the current lull in the 2019/20 fixture list, most Aston Villa fans have been left twiddling their thumbs as proper news is thin on the ground, and there’s only so much transfer speculation I can stomach. Although the campaign hasn’t been completed and we have plenty of future questions to answer on a survival or relation front, it is a decent time to assess how our summer signings have begun settling and on social media this week, it was the turn of Zimbabwean international midfielder, Marvelous Nakamba.
https://astonvilla.vitalfootball.co...ns-reflect-on-26-y-os-first-year-at-the-club/
 
Frankly, I think we've done OK on most of our signings from last summer. For most of them it's a big step up to PL, and team performances have reflected that; in one sense it's been a gamble, but I don't think we had much choice.

There have been (relative) failures, but that's normal. Jota either won't make it or Smith won't give him the chance to. Wesley has to do better. Luiz looks uncomfortable where he's been played. And so on.

Marvelous looks like a pretty good DM. He finds he has to do it all himself far too often. But if we stick with him and improve the positions around him I think we'll end up with a cracking player.
 
McParlandTheGreat said:
Frankly, I think we've done OK on most of our signings from last summer. For most of them it's a big step up to PL, and team performances have reflected that; in one sense it's been a gamble, but I don't think we had much choice.
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I have yet to see evidence that we have done ok with our signings. We are 2nd from bottom and on a downward trajectory .

It is rank amateur signing so many players that needed to 'step up'.

Not one sense. In every sense it has been a gamble.
We had a choice to mix the likes of Marvelous with experience. We chose not to . We look awful .
 
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