Kelechi Nwakali

This guy is class. Changed game when he came on today. Deserves a run of starts. Way too good for Bench.

 

Genuine class. He simply has to start. Changed the game again today.

 

Class...just that.

 

Dropped shoulder on the edge of our box went past a player and got us on the front foot in a matter of seconds, won’t be many in this league capable of that. He looks like a really exciting prospect! What a great find he’s the type of player you build a side around.

 

Possibly the best player we’ve had since… Well for a long time anyway.

 

Let's slow down. He's played less than 350 minutes for us in the league

 

He's brill!

 

Perhaps he has. But class is obvious. To me anyway.

 

Head and shoulders above. Don't get attached, it's nearly January.

 

He's been more involved than some who have played over double. Early days but looks good great involvement for the goal but at 26 it's make or break for him.

 

Don't disagree mate. Looks fantastic on the ball and we are rightly excited. Just don't want huge expectations on the lad based on less than 4 full games in the league, anytime he isn't brilliant I don't want him getting moaned and groaned at.Feels like that's just what we do

 

That Wrexham was perfect for him, the amount of space we had in that midfield especially first half - with that time and space on the ball he could have been lethal, I think Clarke got that totally wrong, although I wasn't expecting there to be that much space so perhaps it was a little surprising to them (though I hope not). He should have been on at half time that game!
(Unless I'm misremembering and getting games mixed up!)

 

Nwakali was unreal today.

Watching a game you can often see what you think is the 'right' move, and you'll say a player has a good game if they execute what you want more often than not. With Nwakali, not only does he not put a foot wrong with those moves, but several times he'll pull off an entirely different - but far more successful - manoeuvre.

I said on Saturday I was *really* looking forward to seeing him play in the flesh, as most of his minutes so far have been away from Oakwell. I couldn't have been more disappointed, but then no-one came out of that one with credit. It's a useful reminder though not to build him up into something he isn't too early.

Still really looking forward to his next game though. I think Clarke has handled him well so far, but now it's definitely time for him to play a more regular part.

 

Nwakali would be in the side every week for me. Quality on the ball and a very intelligent footballer. That quick free kick wasn’t league one level football.

I will disagree that the game changed when he came on today though.

I think we’d asserted ourselves and were dominating the game at the end of the first half and start of the second even prior to his introduction. Don’t get me wrong, I think him coming on improved us - though I thought Connell was good today prior and that him coming off was likely preplanned with him being ill at the weekend, he’d played just shy of an hour.

Russell dallied on the ball a bit for me, and missed that chance. Though he was much better than Saturday.

My father in law was round for Boxing Day lunch and watched the game with me and the lad - he’s a dirty Leeds ST holder - he was very impressed with us and said we were a hell of a lot better than he’d expected. I told him it was a good job he didn’t see us Saturday… But it was nice to hear a view from a neutral.

He is right in his assertion that we were much the better side, fully deserving of the points and that we were unlucky to be behind at half time.

 

He's a good player but I don't think he changed the game. We dominated the whole match. They only scored because of weak goalkeeping. It should have been kept out.

We had a perfectly good goal disallowed, more shots on target, hit the post and Russell skied one he should have buried.

 

It's obvious to me too. Nwakali clearly has Premier League potential.

 

His pass completion stats must be off the charts & he doesn't just do the 10 yards sideways pass. Always seems to pick the correct pass.
As someone said he may have only played 350+ minutes but 300 of them have been above league one imho.

 

I’m amazed no one has singled out the quick free kick leading to our winner. He caught one player not watching, and had the other scampering when he threaded the ball between them with little room for error. It was sublime.