Spinders
Well-Known Member
- Jan 31, 2005
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Interesting quotes on Trippier from his former youth coach in this article - http://www.manchestereveningnews.co...s/man-city-transfers-kieran-trippier-13355808
“He would have been a good fit,” said Eyre, a highly-respected coach who is now assistant manager at Chesterfield.
“You never know how the game will evolve, but at City it would have evolved perfectly in his favour.
“It would have been hard for him to oust Pablo Zabaleta at any time in his career, but he would have been perfect now, for the way Pep wants to play.
“He would be comfortable stepping into midfield and gives excellent service into the front players – and these days he defends to Premier League standards as well.
“City choosing to sign Kyle will now allow him to progress further at Tottenham.
“He would have been perfect for Pep this season, but City have chosen a different type of player.
“Don't get me wrong, Kyle Walker will be an asset to the club but I think Kieran would have been better suited.
“I find the Kyle Walker situation fascinating because him – and Antonio Valencia – are experts at getting to the end of the pitch at maximum speed.
“But by the time they get there, the penalty area is full of bodies.
“Kieran tends to put the ball in ten, 15 or 20 yards earlier, as Charlie Austin and Harry Kane will testify – he picks you out to score the goal.”
The stats back up Eyre's point – last season in the Premier League Trippier had five assists in 566 minutes of action, compared to Walker's five in 2,704.
Eyre also has no doubts that Trippier had the technical ability to fit into City's current team.
“He had a mischievous side to him as well,” he said. “He could pick out a person with 40- and 50-yard passes and hit them on the back of the head.
“I swear the old groundsman still has a Mitre imprint on his head – but whenever he turned around Kieran would be innocently juggling another ball!
“It's a bit of a moan of mine that they allowed him to leave City when he did.
“It comes as no surprise to me at all that he has been signed long-term by Spurs and has won his first England cap.
“To be honest, he was the nearest thing to a certainty at 11 years of age that I and the other academy staff had ever seen.
“Everything was right – he had fantastic parents in Eleanor and Chris and though he rarely had a bad game we never had to tell him when he did because his grandma would have done it by the time he got back to the car!
“You could get football information into him easily, and he would recycle it among his teammates – a great lad to work with, on and off the field.
“He was outstanding in that Youth Cup campaign in 2008, and in extra time I had a real lump in my throat because he was taken out by a bad tackle and stretchered off, which meant he couldn't take part in the celebrations.
“But he soon got over that and we continued to tell anyone who cared to listen that he would make it.”
“He would have been a good fit,” said Eyre, a highly-respected coach who is now assistant manager at Chesterfield.
“You never know how the game will evolve, but at City it would have evolved perfectly in his favour.
“It would have been hard for him to oust Pablo Zabaleta at any time in his career, but he would have been perfect now, for the way Pep wants to play.
“He would be comfortable stepping into midfield and gives excellent service into the front players – and these days he defends to Premier League standards as well.
“City choosing to sign Kyle will now allow him to progress further at Tottenham.
“He would have been perfect for Pep this season, but City have chosen a different type of player.
“Don't get me wrong, Kyle Walker will be an asset to the club but I think Kieran would have been better suited.
“I find the Kyle Walker situation fascinating because him – and Antonio Valencia – are experts at getting to the end of the pitch at maximum speed.
“But by the time they get there, the penalty area is full of bodies.
“Kieran tends to put the ball in ten, 15 or 20 yards earlier, as Charlie Austin and Harry Kane will testify – he picks you out to score the goal.”
The stats back up Eyre's point – last season in the Premier League Trippier had five assists in 566 minutes of action, compared to Walker's five in 2,704.
Eyre also has no doubts that Trippier had the technical ability to fit into City's current team.
“He had a mischievous side to him as well,” he said. “He could pick out a person with 40- and 50-yard passes and hit them on the back of the head.
“I swear the old groundsman still has a Mitre imprint on his head – but whenever he turned around Kieran would be innocently juggling another ball!
“It's a bit of a moan of mine that they allowed him to leave City when he did.
“It comes as no surprise to me at all that he has been signed long-term by Spurs and has won his first England cap.
“To be honest, he was the nearest thing to a certainty at 11 years of age that I and the other academy staff had ever seen.
“Everything was right – he had fantastic parents in Eleanor and Chris and though he rarely had a bad game we never had to tell him when he did because his grandma would have done it by the time he got back to the car!
“You could get football information into him easily, and he would recycle it among his teammates – a great lad to work with, on and off the field.
“He was outstanding in that Youth Cup campaign in 2008, and in extra time I had a real lump in my throat because he was taken out by a bad tackle and stretchered off, which meant he couldn't take part in the celebrations.
“But he soon got over that and we continued to tell anyone who cared to listen that he would make it.”
