Cal has to deal with the rough treatment
IAN Burchnall says Notts County star Callum Roberts will be a marked man this season but insists he must learn to cope with the “rough treatment” from their National League rivals.
The former Newcastle United winger has been in sensational form over pre-season, having played only a bit-part role last term due to injury.
He has returned all guns blazing to underline once again why he is rated as the best player outside the Football League.
But he was subject to several tough challenges in last weekend’s draw away to Solihull Moors which were not punished by the referee, much to Notts’ frustration.
While Burchnall and the fans hope the winger is given protection by the officials this season, which begins away to Barnet tomorrow, Notts’ head coach believes it is something Roberts will have to contend with.
“He’s going to have to deal with some rough treatment,” he said.
“He’s going to have to learn how to cope with that because I’m pretty sure he’s going to get some rough treatment, whether that’s is in the sight of the referees or not.
“But he’s certainly going to be one they earmark not to allow space and time.
“But I think any good player has to understand that the opposition’s job is to stop them.
“The best thing for Cal is not to focus on whether or not he gets protection, but just deal with it.
“If we have two or three other players also playing to their capabilities, they can’t only double up on Cal.
“They might have to work players in other areas and that’ll free up Cal so I think we, as a team, can help protect him as well.”
Roberts’ stock has risen considerably since he joined the club for a nominal fee from Blyth Spartans in January 2020 and has gone on to become a huge favourite at Meadow Lane.
Given his ability, many feel he holds the key to the club’s promotion hopes as they look to make it third time lucky at winning promotion to the National League.
But Burchnall says Notts will not be a one-man team next season.
“Cal is a big player for us, that’s obvious,” he said.
“He’s a very talented player, but it won’t only be him that makes the difference.
“He’s got to play in a system with the rest of the team that suits and that he can work within.
“Within that team, there’s a lot of other talented players – Ruben Rodrigues, Kyle Wootton, Kairo Mitchell, Matt Palmer, the list goes on.
“We want to be in a situation where we’re not solely reliant on one player. I felt like last season, when I came in, there was a lot of questions around Cal and the fact that he was going to be the talisman and if he wasn’t there, what happens?
“But you saw at the back end of last season, Ruben stepped up and scored wonderful goals and drove the team on. It’s really important that we don’t have one player that is the focus, but that there’s a collective of them.”