[2013-04-14] Danny Rose - Newcastle United vs Sunderland

Paolo Di Canio became the third Premier League manager that Danny Rose played under in the space of a year. With a fourth tracking his progress in North London, Rose's next club is as uncertain as Sunderland's next division. The left back will be playing for more than the professional pride of not being relegated: he is playing to impress. As mentioned in a previous Danny Rose blog, he feels that he is ready for first team football, be it at Tottenham or elsewhere.

With his side needing three points against their fiercest rivals, Rose was looking to replicate his form from a similar occasion on Sunday afternoon, as his side travelled to St James' Park. Despite the managerial upheaval at Sunderland, Di Canio's team, on paper, is quite similar to that of O'Neill's side. Rose continues at left back in a 4-4-1-1, with James McClean ahead of him on the left flank and John O'Shea as the left sided central defender. For Newcastle, Sylvain Marveaux played as the right attacker in a 4-3-3, with Mathieu Debuchy the opposition right back.

Rose was terrific throughout the game, defensively solid throughout. As a winger-cum-defender, playing his first full season in a new position, it was doubly impressive. After Di Canio's first game in charge against Chelsea, the Italian commented on Rose's rawness, feeling that there was room for improvement in his defensive game. Against Newcastle, Marveaux tended to drift inside from the right, leaving full back Debuchy with the responsibility of running the flank to provide some width. Rose was almost flawless against the French international, constantly using his pace and strength to shield the ball and shepherd it out of play.




Rose not only defended well on his own flank: he also covered for his teammates on a couple of occasions. His best moment of the game came when his blistering pace foiled a Newcastle counter-attack from a Sunderland free kick.


He also showed some good awareness in other instances, tracking players well and also showing some good aerial ability.



In the second half Sunderland faced few threats down their left flank, with Newcastle instead looking to the returning Ben Arfa on the opposite flank for the last half an hour. The hard-working James McClean also offered good protection to Rose throughout the match.

But if the two linked up well in defence, they offered little as an attacking threat. Against Manchester United, the duo also failed to combine well in attack. With a classic touchline hugging winger ahead of him (Di Canio implored McClean to use his right foot more in training this week), Rose, an inexperienced full back and former winger, seemed unsure about how to contribute when attacking. Today however, it seemed as though Rose was simply told not to go forward (as was Bardsley on the opposite flank), with Di Canio preferring to use the pace of his wingers and Stéphane Sessègnon on the counter instead. It took Rose until injury time to even cross the halfway line, taking on a couple of players and earning a corner.


The only blemish on Rose's game was when he dived in for a tackle on Debuchy in the first half. It was a rash tackle, committed in a part of the pitch where it wasn't necessary. Rose stood still for a good 20 seconds after the tackle, probably having flashbacks of his red card for a similarly reckless tackle on Alan Hutton last season at Villa Park. He only received a yellow this time.


It was a moment that could have undid all his previous good work and put his team under immense pressure. Hopefully, his decision making will improve with more games, as other than that moment his performance was fantastic. If he finishes the season as strongly as he played today, there'll be more than a manager in North London monitoring his progress.

[2013-03-30] Danny Rose - Sunderland vs Manchester United

In what turned out to be Martin O'Neill's last game in charge of the home side, Sunderland took on Manchester United in Saturday's early kick-off. Danny Rose has been one of Sunderland's few bright spots from an otherwise dismal campaign, his attacking thrusts down the left flank earning him plenty of plaudits. His good form has also led to speculation over his future, with the player stating that he's unwilling to return to Tottenham to just sit on the bench.

Hamstring injuries against Bolton in January and Arsenal in February have led to a frustrating 2013 for Rose, but he played the full 90 minutes in the 1-1 draw versus Norwich earlier this month. Against United he lined up at left back in a 4-4-1-1, next to captain John O'Shea, with James McClean ahead of him on the left flank. United lined up in a similar formation: Antonio Valencia started on the right, with Rafael operating behind him. Valencia has been poor all season, as he himself has admitted, but with Rafael's threat and Shinji Kagawa's tendency to drift inside it would be a decent test for someone playing their first full season in a new position.

Defensively, Rose had a very solid game. Valencia's slump continues for at least another game, while Rafael's substitution after half an hour, moving the less threatening Smalling to right back, meant that United targeted Sunderland's right flank instead. Rose pressed Valencia quite aggressively, leading to a number of interceptions.




Positionally Rose was also good, covering a ball over the top on the opposite flank to clear in the first half, before deftly flicking away a cross into the box ahead of Valencia in the second half.


Rose also won a couple of aerial duels against the taller Valencia, while matching him for pace throughout the game. There were a few small defensive errors however, such as getting his body between Valencia and the ball yet still losing possession, but overall Rose had a good game defending.

Offensively however, he was poor. It seems strange that a winger-cum-defender had a good defensive game and a poor offensive one, but a lot of that can be explained by the negative tactics employed by O'Neill. Until United went a goal ahead, Rose wasn't involved in any meaningful attacking move, barely crossing the halfway line. Adam Johnson had now been switched to the left for the rest of the first half, but as he did with McClean, Rose failed to have much interplay with the man ahead of him. Rose's attacking game seemed to be based on dribbling from a deep position, rather than overlapping the winger. Only one dribble was successful, leading to an overhit cross.


The problem for a lot of attacking looking duos on one flank is that they are often too similar in styles. Both McClean and Johnson like to hug the wings, giving an inexperienced full back and former winger a problem in how to contribute when attacking. Rose's only overlapping run in the game even went infield. Hence Rose did what he knows best: dribbling, but doing so from deep with nobody behind you is asking for trouble. Of course, United were superb defensively too. Valencia is going through a poor patch of form but he still protects his flank well, while Carrick positioned himself well on the right flank at times. When Rose was faced with this red defensive wall ahead of him, he did manage to spread the play extremely well with a couple of crossfield passes.



In January, André Villas-Boas said that the chances of Rose being sold were 'completely impossible'. As mentioned, Rose has said that he wants first team football and as he turns twenty-three in the summer it's understandable. Even in 2011 he was talking about playing youth football against the likes of Mesut Özil and Sami Khedira; seeing how their careers have blossomed since he can't be blamed for wanting to really begin his own.

So if he were to return to Tottenham, how would he fit in? With Bale now moved into a central position, the problem of having a touchline hugging winger ahead of him wouldn't exist, assuming that Clint Dempsey and Gylfi Sigurðsson continue to vie for position ahead of him. Rose certainly seems to have improved defensively from his last showing in a Spurs shirt, but there were still moments of indecision against United. That's understandable for a player playing his first season as a defender, but given his rawness and desire for first team football it's unlikely that he'll be at White Hart Lane next season.