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Opinion

The Newcastle star who has something that can’t be coached

7 years ago
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DeAndre Yedlin was signed in the summer for five million pounds from Spurs, the right-back having spent a season on loan with the mackems when he impressed many of their fans and of course, gave away a foul throw which led to Mitro’s equaliser in the derby at St James Park.

Obviously he must have impressed Rafa Benitez as well, the United boss taking a gamble on him and so far it’s paying off big time.

This season so far, DeAndre Yedlin has made 14 appearances, scored one goal and created 14 chances, including the two assists on Saturday against Rotherham.

Yedlin’s biggest attribute is obviously his pace, I mean this boy is rapid and playing right-back allows him to really exploit that pace. This he combines with an excellent jump and solid tackling.

The thing he does have to improve though is his positioning, as he can often be caught out of position far up the field. In the Championship this is usually ok because he is easily one of the fastest players in the division – but in the Premier League where most wingers are also extremely quick, he will get caught out.

This may be why Rafa has at times previously preferred Vurnon Anita, his positioning making him defensively more solid at times.

At home especially, Newcastle can use Yedlin as an excellent attacking outlet with Shelvey in particular being the man who can pick him out. As seen on Saturday, Yedlin proving he can deliver an excellent final ball with those two assists, for Murphy and particularly the Perez goal, where he put it on a plate for the Spaniard.

Rafa however, will undoubtedly be working on Yedlin’s positioning in training, as there is clear improvement in every game I see him play and with some advice from the United boss, the USA international could easily be a Premier League level right-back. Age is on his side (23 years old) and with all the physical attributes to succeed.

Yedlin’s attitude and the way he has taken to Newcastle is also very impressive, clearly settled in very well and has done a lot more media interviews than many of his teammate – often expressing his admiration of the fans and his love of Newcastle.

I’m hoping that he can be here for many years, as DeAndre Yedlin clearly has the talent and the attitude to succeed at St James Park.

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