According to The Athletic, Lewis Hall is ‘not yet considered defensively ready’ to play at left-back in the Premier League by Eddie Howe.
The report that the club are still working on converting the 19-year-old from a midfielder to a full-back, believing he must learn how to play the position before he’s thrown in at the deep end.
It’s an interesting stance given he impressed at left-back for Chelsea across the 2022/23 campaign. However, it is worth noting that we play a very different system, with the defensive-minded Dan Burn a big part of our back four over the past two years.
Speaking to the press last week, Howe insisted that Hall was still a big part of the club’s future, defending his lack of game time as he prepares to complete a £28m permanent move provided we finish above 15th in the league.
“Sometimes, and I know it’s a rare commodity these days, we just need some patience.” Howe said. “We just need to wait to develop players. There’s no magic wand, but time and good work on the training pitch. Players develop at different speeds, but we’re delighted with the progress he’s made.
“He’s handled himself really well and it’s been a season of growth for him although the external view would not necessarily have seen that.
“We have seen that internally so it’s been a really powerful, positive year for him. A lot of work has been put into him and I do believe in him long-term.”
Those last few lines are quite telling. We don’t know the ins and outs, but The Athletic suggest we are fine-tuning his game on the training ground and remain happy with his development, despite the fact he’s played just 12 minutes of football since the turn of the year.
Source link : https://www.nufcblog.co.uk/2024/03/13/why-eddie-howe-has-been-so-reluctant-to-play-lewis-hall-revealed-in-new-report/
Author : Olly Hawkins
Publish date : 2024-03-13 07:00:41
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