Gary Neville talks about West Ham’s main danger man in today’s match…
In Gary Neville’s fortnightly column for EA Sports FIFA14 Ultimate Team, Gary has been giving his view on one of England’s young gems, Ravel Morrison.
Read the full column at http://bit.ly/1aHaUSX
‘I watched Ravel Morrison as the Manchester United youth team won the Youth Cup. I`ve seen the development of the player. He also has great balance but also great awareness. He understands where players are around him, and always looks like he has time and space when a game is frantic. He can go past a player, and he`s also got a toughness to him – he`s hard to knock off the ball. For a centre midfielder to have that is a rare commodity in English football; you need to go back to the likes of Paul Gascoigne.
‘He has a long way to go before he can get the levels anywhere near Gascoigne, but he`s a unique talent in that he plays in a central area but still has the ability to beat people. This shows in Morrison`s creative stats in FUT with his Vision, Short Passing, Dribbling, Agility and Balance all mid 70s, and an overall rating of 68.
‘Defenders look at the likes of Morrison and think they`re weak and that they can easily be pushed off the ball. However, these boys are a lot stronger than they look and that is down to their agility and balance. They`re always in control of their movement so are a lot more difficult to get off the ball than they look. They`re alert and have great intuition of knowing when the defender is going to make his tackle, and they slip past them or go a different way.
‘The key is to let these players develop. They will go through cycles, disappointments, form loss and injuries but if you live through it with them, give them the space to develop and don`t pressurise them too much, you`ll eventually get the worth and value of them. Ramsey is the perfect example of the pathway and obstacles. It`s a journey.’