Where in the world is Romelle Donovan? He’s probably on the bench. Or on the coach travelling to Bristol to sit on the bench. He’s sitting down somewhere.
But less literally, what’s going on? His league minutes this season look like this: 60, 0, 45, 90, 77, 67, 0, 2, 12, 11. They tailed off after Blackburn, when a mistake trying to dribble out from the back led to a goal. There was a theory that his reduced minutes meant the plan was to start others, then let Romelle run tired defenders ragged. But brief cameos have rather undermined that.
Are you saying he’s not good enough to start? No, I’m not saying that.
But since Blackburn, the manager hasn’t started him. That isn’t a question.
Okay. What’s the manager doing instead of picking Romelle Donovan? Well, Oli Arblaster started in a notionally right-sided position against Wolves and Stoke. Tahith Chong started wide right against Lincoln, swapping with Ben Brereton Díaz at times. Against Portsmouth, Chong played there again, first as a winger and then as a wing-back after Hamza Choudhury got injured.
So the gaffer is showing a willingness to make changes? I suppose.
Why so glum? It’s just not working very well, is it?
I’m asking the questions here. What isn’t working? The wide players.
But between Chong and Brereton Díaz, we’ve seen a goal and two assists in the last two games. Aren’t you just being a misery? That’s probably fair. And of course those contributions matter. Still, we could also do with someone who takes on his full-back and carries us up the pitch. Chong and Brereton Díaz are each averaging just one touch in the opposition box per game, which isn’t exactly keeping defenders awake at night.
And what’s the answer? …erm, Romelle Donovan seems, at worst, to be a plausible one.
Why? He’s getting twice as many touches in the opposition box. He’s also averaging 16.57 carries per 90, the highest figure in the squad.
Carrying what to where? The football. Towards their goal. In fact, there’s a modifying word for that. His 6.92 ‘progressive’ carries per 90 are also the highest in the squad.
Where else is he a “squad leader”? Through balls, one of Gus Hamer’s great strengths. Donovan averages 0.49 per 90, almost twice the next-best figure of 0.26 from Kalvin Phillips.
Anything else? Ground duels won. He’s winning 7.66 per 90, 24% more than Phillips in second, with a 47.7% success rate. When the manager lets him, Donovan usually gets involved.
It’s a small sample, though. Has he played enough for those numbers to tell us much? He’s played 364 minutes. Enough to make a case for more.
Enough to make the case against? You’ve got me there. It’s too soon to judge either way, and that applies equally to one mistake against Blackburn in a game we won.
Should he start today against Bristol City? I think so.
Will he? I can’t see it.
Would you bank on Romelle Donovan’s loan lasting beyond January? Probably not.
Need a creative outlet? Shove him on the bench!
Is there a world where maybe he plays in the 10 role? Swap the shape to 3-5-2 maybe with Donovan in the middle?