NEIL MELLOR
Our guest columnist on why Rafa Benitez is a top manager
I’VE been around plenty of grounds in my role as a Sky Sports News reporter this season and the quality of players in the Championship is higher than ever. One man who’s really impressed me is Matt Ritchie. The winger dropped out of the top flight to sign for Newcastle and he has embraced the new challenge with an excellent attitude. His work-rate has been exceptional, and the way he gets back to defend shows you he’s completely bought into Rafa Benitez’s methods. Add to that his end product – the 27-year-old has four goals and five assists so far – and you’ve got a player who can frighten anyone. Speaking of which, Lee Tomlin at Bristol City is a player I love to watch. Every time I’ve seen him play, he’s been head and shoulders above anyone else on the pitch. Technically, he’s outstanding, with his ability on the ball and his awareness. He probably lacks the work-rate of Ritchie, but his contribution more than makes up for it. Everyone is talking about how many goals Tammy Abraham has scored, but I’ll bet Tomlin’s vision and creativity were behind the bulk of them. The last one is Scott Hogan, the Brentford striker who has bounced back from long-term injury to score eight goals in 12 Championship games. His movement is a constant threat. He’s a real pest, always trying to get in behind defenders, which not enough modern centre-forwards do. And he’s got ability, too. I was speaking to someone at Brentford who reckoned Hogan was a better finisher than Andre Gray. When you consider Gray scored 23 times for Burnley last season, you could be looking at some very big numbers.