Allan Saint-Maximin has been one of Newcastle United’s best performers this season, making an impact in most games he starts, but Noel Whelan believes the 25-year-old has ‘struggled’ when coming off the bench as he ‘tries to do too much’.
Saint-Maximin has made 26 Premier League appearances this season, scoring five goals with three assists while creating 40 chances, whipping in 41 crosses and making 111 successful dribbles. He tends to fire blanks when introduced as a substitute, however.
Whelan says the uncapped Frenchman needs to grow into the game to be a more effective sub, telling Football Insider: “With Saint-Maximin, I think the problem with him is he knows that he’s their star player and he tries to do everything by himself. We love the darting runs, we love those powerful runs that he makes.
“But sometimes when you come off the bench and you’re not properly warm, you’ve not got yourself into the game, those touches can be a little bit too heavy. They can run away from you like not long after you’ve started the game.”
Saint-Maximin’s last three appearances have been as a substitute. In Newcastle’s 2-1 win over Brighton & Hove Albion, he had two successful dribbles and was given a player rating of 7/10 by Lee Ryder of Chronicle Live. In the 1-0 defeat to Chelsea, the 25-year-old had two dribbles and created a chance but was given a player rating of 6/10. And in the 1-0 defeat to Everton, Saint-Maximin had two dribbles, created two chances and was given a player rating of 6/10.
Whelan added: “Some people can adapt to coming off the bench and getting into a game easier than others. I think he’s struggled because he tries to do too much himself at times. He doesn’t need to. Grow into the game if you can. I know there’s not much time with 20 minutes to play but the pace of the game is a lot quicker than when you’re warming up on the sideline.”
Saint-Maximin is a player who likes to run at his opponent the minute he gets the ball to feet and sometimes it doesn’t come off. But he’s a confident player who won’t give up just because one attempt was thwarted. Whelan’s criticism is fair, but it’s unlikely the Frenchman will change his style any time soon.
In other news, journalists say Chris Wood ‘struggled’ for Newcastle in 1-0 defeat to Everton
