In his exclusive column for CaughtOffside, former Liverpool attacker Stan Collymore discusses some of football’s biggest talking points, including the signing of Andre Onana for Man United, what to expect from Aston Villa this season, Jordan Henderson has tarnished his Liverpool legacy with Saudi move and what is Wilfried Zaha doing moving to Turkey? plus more.
Erik ten Hag has added a massive piece of the puzzle to his Man United squad
Since arriving at Man United, the very basics Erik ten Hag has wanted from his team is for everyone to be comfortable on the ball and capable of playing through the lines. Last season, David de Gea was a weakness in that philosophy and now the United manager has got himself a modern goalkeeper who is exceptional with his feet.
In addition to the skills Onana possesses to be a success at Man United, I think at 27, he is young enough to learn about Manchester United as a football club. It will be completely different from where he has come from, with no disrespect to Inter, but the expectation levels at the Premier League giants are enormous; which is something you have to give De Gea credit for after withstanding it for 12 years between the sticks at Old Trafford.
Overall, I believe Onana is a massive piece of the jigsaw for Ten Hag, not just because he can play with his feet, but down the spine of the team you have to have quality players. United have now got a solid goalkeeper, a central defender, a top midfielder in Casemiro, and I think they just need to add a world-class number nine; although, now that he has signed a new contract, it would be great to see Marcus Rashford occupy that role this season at Old Trafford.
Watch out for Aston Villa…
I’ve already booked my flights for the Europa Conference League Final in Athens next May due to my excitement for the upcoming season for Aston Villa.
All jokes aside, I think Unai Emery was massively disrespected as a manager in England following his spell at Arsenal, which was evident in the way people mocked him for the way he spoke etc. It was a massive coup for Aston Villa to get him and from my perspective, you only have to look at the jobs he has done in Spain where he won trophies regularly, to see the potential trajectory of Villa.
Emery now has Monchi with him at the club and that is also a massive addition for Villa as the duo understand each other through the work they have done together in the past.
For the upcoming season, one of Villa’s weaknesses last season was their midfield and it is an area where they needed more flexibility. Bringing in Tielemans was an exceptional piece of business and also Pau Torres, who has the ability to step into that area of the pitch. I have seen that they were linked with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain this morning and I think that would be a good bit of business on a free to add to the depth of the squad and to benefit from his experience.
When I look at Aston Villa now and I think, they have got a squad. It is an exciting club to go to this summer with Emery being there and with European football arriving at Villa Park next season. I believe the club are in a very good position to have a good season and progress further, with the Europa League and Champions League spots being a good place for them to aim for.
What are you doing Wilfried?
At 30 years of age, Wilfried Zaha could have made a significant impact at a Premier League club. I spoke about Aston Villa above, that is a team where Zaha could have fit in nicely. West Ham and Brighton are others to name a few that would have benefitted from the winger’s talents throughout the upcoming season, so why has he gone to Turkey?
The best moment a player like Zaha will have, or anyone going from the Premier League to Turkey, is the reception they will get at the airport from the fans. I don’t mean to be disrespectful, but it is all downhill from there.
Look at when Dele Alli went to Besiktas, great reception but that is as good as it got. I think this move from Zaha is absolute madness. I just don’t understand why he has gone there with his talent. I presume it is for the money but he could have easily got the same in the Premier League.
Henderson has tarnished his legacy and the next Liverpool captain
Following the departure of Jordan Henderson, I feel that Virgil van Dijk should be given the Liverpool captaincy. He is a player that leads by example so for me, he is the obvious choice with Alisson taking the vice-captain role seeing that James Milner has also departed Anfield.
Sticking with Henderson, I am very disappointed in his decision to move to Saudi Arabia after all he has done for the LGBTQ+ community in the past. It leaves a bitter taste in the mouth and I believe it will tarnish his legacy at Liverpool. You can’t say that something is wrong, go out of your way to campaign for it, and then go to a place such as Saudi Arabia that is known to disenfranchise the group of people he was standing up for.
I like Jordan a lot but it is gross hypocrisy. I think a lot of Liverpool fans won’t say anything at the moment after all he has done, but I know a lot of others that are very disappointed in his decision and believe it has tarnished all the good things he has done during his time at Anfield.
Levi Colwill should have a clear aim this season
“Can be one of the greatest centre-backs in England,” were the words used by Mauricio Pochettino at the weekend when speaking about his defender Levi Colwill. This season is a big one for the 20-year-old and I think a good thing for him to aim for is to try and make it into Gareth Southgate’s team for next summer’s EUROS in Germany.
I think the future is bright for the defender but I am always a bit sceptical about managers saying players will be the greatest this or that. I remember Sir Alex Ferguson saying that Phil Jones was going to go on a be one of the greatest players to ever play for Man United and that never worked out. I think sometimes that can put a lot of pressure on younger players but Pochettino must know Colwill well or has heard things about the player from people around Chelsea to make a comment like that.
Long-term for Colwill, one of the centre-back spots for England should be the aim, and who is to say it won’t be next summer when we see him there?
Is the Chelsea squad too young?
Sticking with Chelsea, a worry I have for them this season is having too many young players. I have seen that they are linked to Crystal Palace’s Micheal Olise, in addition to them trying to bring in Brighton’s Moises Caicedo. In time, Chelsea will have one of the best young squads in Europe, but it takes much more than that to mould them into a battle-hardened, competitive team.
My worry with Chelsea is that there are not enough senior figures around after leaving many of them go over the last few weeks. How many of the ones left are capable of dragging the younger ones through tough moments? I am all for clubs buying young talent and building for the future, but I also feel that it will be two or three years before we see the best out of this Chelsea squad, and will Pochettino get the time to do that?
Body cameras on referees have benefits
Fulham recorded an entertaining 3-2 win over Brentford on Sunday but a talking point from that match for me was seeing the referee wearing a body camera.
I liked the idea because it would give referees the chance to improve by watching their own footage back and in the long run, help them correct their mistakes. I also feel that the introduction of bodycams would kill dissent as you’d be able to hear what players are saying to referees when they approach them, should the footage ever be released.
I don’t know if I would like it in every game, but certainly, every so often I think bodycams should be used with the idea of improving referees through learning through their own mistakes and also helping them to see what they have done correctly.