Interesting Kuol Article

[Jammy89]

https://www.ftbl.com.au/news/dutch-a...7ajXdRDTY7NS4Y

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A year ago to the day Garang Kuol bounced off the bench amid frenzied fanfare and almost scored an equaliser for Australia against eventual champions Argentina at the World Cup.
With a four-year deal at Newcastle United under lock and key, the youngest player ever to pull on the green and gold at the planet’s big show seemingly had the world at his slick feet.

Skip forward 12 months, and the fledgling attacker is suffering what might be described as growing pains as he labours to make an impact on loan at Eredivisie battlers FC Voldendam - a side sitting joint bottom in the Netherlands with just eight points from 14 games.

Kuol, now 19, has scored once in 12 appearances - across 650 minutes - and is in danger of drifting into irrelevancy at a club which was earmarked as a finishing school after a previous five-month spell at Hearts, amid the high intensity combat zone of Scottish football, yielded a single goal in just 197 minutes of action.

If Kuol isn’t already at a crossroads, it’s just around the next bend with his lightweight frame, and questionable endurance, working against him at a level where every weakness is ruthlessly exposed.

After five senior caps, the one-time Central Coast Mariners prodigy has rapidly fallen from Socceroos favour, and subsequently even from Olyroos contention in what is proving a hard reality hit after breathless hyperbole which greeted his Toon move 14 months back.

Dare we say it - if the dial doesn’t soon shift the kid from Shepparton is in peril of entering Daniel Arzani territory.

The similarities are stark, Arzani bursting forth at the 2018 World Cup as a ****ager and also spirited to Scotland where his future unraveled on loan at Celtic.

An ACL injury on debut for the Bhoys was a sucker punch for Arzani, who languished during loan spells in Denmark, Holland and Belgium before being released back to the A-League by parent club Manchester City.

Now rebuilding his future at Melbourne Victory, via Macarthur Bulls, Arzani’s misadventure is a cautionary tale Kuol won’t want to duplicate.

Kuol’s current travails were encapsulated in a 30-minute cameo off the bench at the weekend.

He was introduced as a potential game-breaker by coach Matthias Kohler - a role he often fulfilled for the Mariners - in the 57th minute at home against PEC Zwolle with the scores locked at 0-0.

Unfortunately for both Kuol, and hapless Voldendam, they went on to lose 5-0 in a spectacular collapse which will have done little for the confidence of either player or club.

Prior to his vaunted transfer to Tyneside, Kuol had another significant offer on the table - to join older brother Alou at VfB Stuttgart, a club renowned for nurturing youth and currently perched third on the Bundesliga ladder.

A change of agent, and change of direction saw him turn his gaze instead to England’s north-east in what may turn out to be a sliding doors decision.

Observers in Holland don’t question Kuol’s natural gifts, but there are reservations over his work rate, physicality - or lack thereof - and inability last 90 minutes.

A change of mindset might also be needed to avoid following brother Alou, now repatriated to the Mariners, back to the A-League far sooner than he’d ever have envisioned.

Next up is a trip to second-placed Feyenoord - whether Kohler is willing to roll the dice again with his talented but problematic import remains to be seen.

[toptoon]

Cheers Jammy. As we know, many don’t make it even after a promising start. I’d get him in the gym pronto - no chance of making it in the Prem (especially with us) without the minimum of strength and bags of physicality.
He needs to be making 270 minutes plus in a week of game time for us and so if there are doubts over making 90 mins……..

[ex_pat_magpie]

Cheers Jammy. As we know, many don’t make it even after a promising start. I’d get him in the gym pronto - no chance of making it in the Prem (especially with us) without the minimum of strength and bags of physicality.
He needs to be making 270 minutes plus in a week of game time for us and so if there are doubts over making 90 mins……..

He needs Eddie Howe to analyse what he has come to today, pick up the pieces and get the best out of the lad. If he still has potential then who better than E.H. to make the most of what he has.