Quote:
Originally Posted by devilish
There is a big difference between small EPL sides and big EPL sides. Richardson is the classic example of that. He saved West brom arse, he also had the international debut anyone would dream of having, and yet.....he was pretty shite with us. Taibi is another example. The classic case of a player who was capable of playing incredibly well at small team's level and yet he kept on bottling it when playing with bigger teams.
As stated before Evans is just a young defender with potential, nothing more nothing less. He will have to work hard to remain in the team (expecially since we are already well stocked up of 'potential greats' who werent able to develop to the next level) let alone win a first team place. As stated before, this 'you're destined for greatness' attitude will only damage the player. We are already well stocked up with such talent on the bench not to forget the countless number of new Bruce's and Gary Neville's we have shown the door in the past few years.
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Your comparisons in this thread don't make sense - none of them match the situation for Evans or Pique and you're also tending to go back almost a decade and a half to give examples. The game and the pressure to deliver now is nothing like how it was back then so comparing anything Neville did in breaking into the team to what the youngsters have to do now to break in is like the difference between night and day.
As for Richardson. He played in central midfield for West Brom. He did not play there for us, so drawing up a direct comparison and then attaching bottle, or the lack of, to it, is pointless. Maybe he would have been just as shite on the wing for them as he was for us, we have no evidence either way.
Comparing anyone to the Maldini influence over Milan is also rather pointless. The exploits of Cesare and his hand at that club bought Paolo the time others would not get. Young defenders are not trusted in Italy even if they are exceptional, for the most part. There is no question that Maldini's foot could get in the door because he was connected, well before his talent could be scrutinized. The same will go for his son should he go on to prove himself a player anything close to his dad or grandad.
You'd be best off judging Evans off the back of his own exploits to date. All your examples of other players can be strongly argued against for various reasons. If Evans is good enough he should get his chances. Full stop. He is his own man and there's no need for this 'next insert former legend' stuff you're spouting.