JOHNGIBSON Keep focus on United, not Chelsea title dreams
KENEDY WAS WRONG TO TALK ABOUT FUTURE WHEN HE IS STRUGGLING NOW
FOOTBALLERS are young men with the world waiting to be conquered and often they can engage their mouth but not their brain.
It is all too easy to speak out on any given subject without considering the implications of what they are actually saying.
All the more easy if you happen to be speaking to someone back home thousands of miles away as if the world was not a global village and what you say will not wing its way back to bite you.
Thus Kenedy, still only 22 years of age, fell foul of the footballer’s curse this week when talking to Brazilian website UOL.
You would presume he would want to lie doggo and take advantage of an international break which meant no games for a fortnight. But no, in the midst of some of the worst form in his life, missing a match-winning penalty and giving the ball away more than once to gift goals, he decided to talk about how much he is looking forward to going back to Chelsea and becoming a champion.
I ask you, how is that for timing?
I think right now Kenedy would be best off talking about how grateful he is Rafa Benitez went back to offer him a second loan deal and how much he owes United’s boss and the fans.
How United are a big club and he needs to do well for them on a consistent basis before he decides his longterm future.
Because right now Kenedy’s biggest task is retaining his place in Newcastle’s team, never mind becoming a champion at Chelsea.
Look across the dressingroom and ask Christian Atsu about a young player having a future at Stamford Bridge. Then consider even current superstars were still kicked out by Chelsea in their formative years – Kevin de Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku among them. Of course Kenedy has an abundance of natural skills and the potential to become a quality player but there are no guarantees. It takes more than ability to make it. United fans have loved the young Brazilian, seeing in him last season what Chelsea saw when they brought him across to this country.
However, as can happen with developing kids, he has hit the buffers and needs a lift from somewhere. Benitez has talked about his problems having just become a dad and playing with a groin niggle.
One of Kenedy’s other problems is being ‘lazy’ when it comes to learning English. Lazy, by the way, is the word he used to describe his inability to get a grip of the language three years after arriving in this country - though he insists he is taking lessons seriously now.
There was not a dafter lad – or a more talented one – than Paul Gascoigne, yet when he signed for Lazio I went across to live at his villa in Rome for four days and was surprised at how quickly he had picked up pigeon Italian. He spoke easily with kids and fans which, together with his audacious talent, made him instantly lovable to the locals.
If Gazza can do it then surely Kenedy can.
I only bang on about Kenedy because he has real talent and I don’t want to see it wasted.
It is easy to fall into the trap of saying too much without thinking of the implications. We can forgive him that, even if in his case the timing was bad.
The best thing he can do now is button his lip, buckle down to the task ahead with relentless determination and start playing like a champion against Arsenal today.