Joe needs to step up - and his best mate is sure he Will
MIDFIELDER HAS ENDURED A DIFFICULT SPELL BUT IS TIPPED TO SHINE FOR TOON
FOR all the money Newcastle United’s new owners will spend this month, it is easy to forget the Magpies already have a player on their books whom the previous regime ‘broke all the rules’ to sign. It is coming up a year since Joe Willock embarked on an unforgettable loan spell at St James’ Park but the 22-year-old has yet to come close to hitting those heights since joining the club on a permanent basis last summer.
Willock’s attitude is certainly not in question – the midfielder was keen to encourage and applaud his team-mates as they warmed up against Watford despite being left out of the starting line-up again on Saturday – but this has been a testing period. A s well as having to contend with Covid, Willock has been playing catch-up at various points.
He did not have a proper pre-season at Arsenal and even took painkilling injections so he could play after suffering a freak toe injury earlier in the campaign.
A change of manager has also brought with it a change of role since Willock completed his £25m move from Arsenal.
Whereas Steve Bruce tended to use Willock in a three-man midfield and gave the youngster the licence to push forward, the summer signing has been handed greater responsibilities off the ball in a deeper role by Eddie Howe.
Willock has been tasked with pressing the opposition and winning the ball back in a two-man partnership in the middle of the park and that is a task he is still adjusting to.
He will undoubtedly benefit from becoming a more well-rounded player and at 22 has perhaps, learnt more from this challenging spell than he did when he was scoring for fun. It is worth pointing out it was only eight months ago Willock became the youngest player in Premier League history to score in seven consecutive games and best friend Reiss Nelson is adamant that loan spell proved what his former Arsenal team-mate is capable of.
Howe said Willock is a player he ‘really believes in’ who will get ‘better and better throughout the season’
He told the Chronicle: “It was weird at first. “My locker is right next to his locker so the day he was going, I had a little lump in my throat. I felt like I wanted to cry.
“I had to get used to not seeing him there the next day and the day after when we had come through together.
“After Joe scored his first goal, I was like ‘this is it’ because I believed in him so much and knew what he could do. I knew he would carry on doing that because once he scores he does not stop scoring.
“For me, Joe is one of the best attacking midfielders I have seen.
“There is still so much he can do and improve. He is always in great positions and he also does the ugly side of the game as well, which people don’t really see.
“He is the full package, especially for a young player.”
Nelson may be biased but, given some of the players the winger has played with at Arsenal, that is high praise indeed and it is easy to see why Bruce made Willock his number one target last summer.
Maintaining that remarkable run of form was always going to be a big ask but Newcastle did not and do not envisage a repeat of what happened with Kenedy after the Brazilian struggled in his second spell at the club after an impressive first stint in 2018.
These are two very different characters and Willock has never lost the belief his performances will improve. Getting more out of him could yet be the difference between the Magpies staying up or going down.
After all, since Eddie Howe’s first game in charge, a wild 3-3 draw against Brentford, Newcastle have only found the net on five occasions in nine games and Allan Saint-Maximin and the injured Callum Wilson have scored four of those goals.
Newcastle have lacked a goalscoring threat from midfield and Willock has yet to get off the mark during a stop-start campaign.
However, there has been no shortage of backing from the coaching staff.
Howe said Willock is a player he ‘really believes in’ who will get ‘better and better throughout the season’.
Assistant Jason Tindall has hailed Willock’s ‘huge potential’ while fellow number two Graeme Jones backed the midfielder to be a ‘fantastic player for this club’.
Just like a year ago, though, Newcastle need Willock to step up as the 22-year-old continues to dream of that moment he scores in front of a full St James’ Park for the first time.
The chance to play in front of those fans every week was one of the main reasons why Willock was prepared to leave his boyhood club once and for all last summer.
Nelson, who was having dinner with Willock in Manchester when his friend suddenly had to shoot off for talks with Newcastle, has no doubt the Londoner will do those supporters proud once more.
He added: “Joe’s heart is really big. When your heart’s like that, most people gravitate towards you. That is why the fans love him.
“Most footballers are arrogant or have this persona but if we are walking down the street and there are fans there he will speak to them for five to 10 minutes. You don’t really see that in football.
“If we see people we treat them exactly the same way as we would treat anyone in the world.
“Some people, if the person is a bit famous, they want to change the way they are but Joe’s just been true to himself since the age of nine. That is why he is an amazing guy.”