Horses for courses.
Pep doesn’t believe that 2018/19 Sané was the player he needed to put in a CORRECT SHIFT FOR THE TEAM, so he didn’t play that much. That was down to Leroy.
Now, Prp clearly knows Leroy CAN BE a world class player, but he can’t show it in three flashes, every other game, and twice on Sunday, it has to be all the time. There are too many high quality players we can play who WILL PUT IN A SHIFT if Leroy doesn’t!
For me, it is all mental. Pep believes in ball control and then devastation in the final 20 meters. Leroy simply gives the ball away too often, doesn’t use it to full effect too often, and doesn’t exploit his superiority over his opponent often enough.
When he goes those things, he looks like he is walking on air and in full flight he is unplayable. The problem is the other 88 minutes!!
Last season, we saw glimpses of Leroy chasing down opponents and winning the ball back, but we also saw full on sulky, don’t give a fuck, flick here, flick there, Leroy, who you know is going to get yanked!
To me, he needs to take a lead out of Sergio’s book (or Raheem’s or Bernardo’s). Sergio is the best goal scorer we have ever seen in a sky blue shirt. He is a certified GLOBAL legend for what he has done, yet in his 30’s, he is working harder than ever, both with AND WITHOUT the ball. Pep has taken a player who was already a 10/10 and made him better!! There is a lesson in there for every player, but none more do than Leroy.
I hope he learns it, but I’m afraid it looks like he will choose the “easy” option of returning to Germany to play for the perennial champions, make his Mum happy and get lots of adulation. It is certainly an intoxicating prospect, and I’m sure the pressure is intense, but I just feel like it would be a better footballing education to sign another 5/6 year deal at City and THEN move, if he wants to, as he will be reaching his prime 28-31 age range and can ride off into the sunset with a Bosman wad in his back pocket as well.
I’d venture that if he leaves, it will have zero overall effect on this squad, even without his goals and assists, because they will simply come from someone else. I hope we don’t have to find out, but I fear we will.