Manager hails Arsenal loanee and says his ‘finishing is really good’

Follow us on Google Discover

Derby County boss Paul Warne is praying that Arsenal loanee Tyreece John-Jules has put his injury issues behind him with the Premier League starlet potentially the goalscorer The Rams need. 

Marking his return to action with an assist in the 1-0 victory over Port Vale last time out, Tyreece John-Jules is determined to make up for lost time. 

The London-born striker arrived on loan from Premier League leaders Arsenal over the summer but has been restricted to only 38 minutes of third-tier football so far, much to the frustration of Derby County boss Paul Warne. 

Arsenal loanee enduring tough time

“We have to be very careful with him,” Warne tells Rams TV, keen to manage John-Jules fitness to avoid a repeat of the thigh issue which kept him on the sidelines for two months.  

“When I brought him to the club I just felt he was something we were missing because we had lost a Didzy (David McGoldrick) character. Didzy can do things other players can do and in every team he has played in he leaves big shoes to fill.

“I felt we needed a different striker to what we had. He is as cool as a cucumber. His finishing in drills is really good.”

At the age of 22, this still feels like a big season in John-Jules’ career. It seems unlikely that there is a first-team place awaiting for him back home at Arsenal, with this latest loan spell an opportunity for the former England Under 21 international to showcase his talents before his likely departure in the summer of 2024. 

John-Jules’ wait for a first start of the League One campaign is likely to go on, however. Saturday’s trip to Leyton Orient coming too soon. 

‘He makes the team better’

“He isn’t physically in a place yet where he can play a lot more than he is playing,” former Rotherham United boss Warne adds.

“We have to manage his training minutes. We have to manage his game minutes. But I would like to think that people can see why we wanted to bring him to the club. He gets in really good goalscoring positions, the lads love him.

“(He’s) a really popular member of the dressing room. He makes the team better.” 

John-Jules, who joined Arsenal’s academy all the way back in 2009, moved to Derby after previous stints at the likes of Ipswich Town, Sheffield Wednesday and Blackpool.