Micah Richards has claimed that Newcastle United winger, Allan Saint-Maximin, gives him ‘nightmares’, as he told Sky Sports PL (13/02/22 at 1:50 pm).
The former right-back claimed that he just wouldn’t know how to defend against the all-action Newcastle player if he came up against him.
On Sunday, Saint-Maximin was a handful once again as the Magpies beat Aston Villa 1-0 on home soil.
That was three Premier League wins on the bounce for Eddie Howe’s men and another sign that they will get out of their current mess.
Nonetheless, during his playing days, Richards would have come up against his fair share of attackers, from Cristiano Ronaldo to Gareth Bale, as he made an admission about the French forward flying down Newcastle’s flanks.
“Saint-Maximin, he just gives me nightmares,” said Richards. “I think about trying to defend against him and I don’t know which way to show him.
“His feet are so quick. He gets into positions where you don’t know which way to show him. Do you go tight?
“This is where he has improved in his game. The composure and his weight of pass.
“I think if they are going to get out of this mess they are in, then it’s going to be down to players like him. He can go at any defence with confidence.”
It’s the unexpected nature of Saint-Maximin that makes his speed of movement, both with and without the ball, even more dangerous.
At times, it seems as though the 24-year-old doesn’t know what he is going to be doing, which makes the life of those facing him even tougher.
One area Saint-Maximin needs to improve on is his final output in front of goal, from being more composed to putting his head up and finding a teammate.
If he does that, then the Magpies have a superstar that can sit front and centre of their long-term and ambitious project.
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