How Luton boss Rob Edwards brought out the best in Barkley
Ross Barkley just needs to be loved.
It’s always been this way, throughout a career that brought him up and through the ranks at Everton, then to Chelsea, Aston Villa, Nice and now Luton Town. There is a clear common denominator to any success he’s had: He’s been shown care, understanding and attention by the manager and the fans.
Those who crack this formula experience wonderful things. A slew of different Everton managers went up and down with him, but when things were up, he looked like the second coming of Wayne Rooney at times. Villa and Dean Smith pandered to him, paired him with Jack Grealish and talked him up for a Euro 2020 spot; for half a season, until injury struck, he was magnificent.
And now Rob Edwards at Luton, a superb man-manager, is showing he understands how to connect with Barkley and extract the very best from him. In turn, Barkley is turning in the kind of quality performances that could well steer the Hatters to Premier League safety.
"Ross is a player that still needs an element of freedom to get the best out of him - as long as we can get a couple of non-negotiables from him - he’s got to be able to feel the game to be at his best, "Edwards told TNT Sport in December.
"He’s an artist, really. You’ve got to allow him a little bit to go and do his stuff. We love having him here, he’s come into the group, shown loads of humility and worked incredibly hard."
Barkley is Luton’s highest-rated player, averaging a 7.20 WhoScored rating in the Premier League this term, courtesy of doing just about everything very well. He’s been decisive in terms of goals and assists, bagging three of each; he’s taken the most shots (38) and played the most open-play passes that have eventually led to a goal (5); he’s made the second-most tackles in the middle third (14); and he’s recovered 119 loose balls across the park, a team-high.
Luton’s early Premier League games saw the attack heavily lean on wing-back Alfie Doughty’s deliveries, but as Barkley, and Chiedozie Ogbene, have settled in, the team’s threat in transitional situations has risen exponentially. They now drive forward with menace and belief, led by a galloping Barkley who thrives carrying the ball into space.
For this success to continue, Edwards will have to continue to endorse and encourage Barkley, filling him with the confidence that he is the difference-maker, that he is the man who can help Luton over the line.
Because history tells us that things would change dramatically if that feeling, that connection, is lost. When things got on top of Barkley at Everton, his performances dipped hard. At Villa, once injury had derailed him, he reacted poorly to being substituted, once booting a water bottle, another time sitting on the advertising boards and removing his boots before walking round to the bench.
At Chelsea and Nice he was shown very little affection at any stage. Maurizio Sarri gave him either 60 or 30 minutes in a monotonous rotation pattern at Stamford Bridge, while Nice didn’t even register him to play European football. It’s no wonder neither ever saw the best of Barkley.
Luton, clearly, have found the formula, and at age 30 he is playing some of his best-ever football in the world’s strongest league. Talk of an England call-up feels ludicrously over the top, but for those who have watched his career play out, this late renaissance offers a nice, warm glow.
Ross Barkley just needs to be loved. That has always - and will always - be the case.
