Liam Rosenior has hailed the emergence of Ross Barkley, citing the midfielder’s switch from his boyhood club Everton to Chelsea as crucial in his development as a player.
Barkley has been one of the revelations in Maurizio Sarri’s revolution with the 24-year-old finally realising his full potential at west London. The artful midfielder, who is also blessed with strength and pace, has been entrusted by the ex-Napoli schemer to occupy the left spot in his preferred three-man midfield in recent weeks and has largely impressed for the Blues.
The ex-Everton man’s steady return to top form has seen him earn a recall to the England squad and ahead of the Blues’ league match against the Toffees at Stamford Bridge on Sunday that sees Barkley face his former side, tv pundit Rosenior has given his two cents regarding the resurgence of the Three Lions international.
Speaking at a television program along with fellow pundit Danny Murphy, Rosenior believes that at Chelsea, Barkley now has a manager that puts trust in him, as well as teammates who bring out the best in him.
“What Sarri has done is seen a player that fits into his way of playing, and he’s got top, top midfield players in there helping him become a better player – Kante, [Mateo] Kovacic is a great player pushing him, the holding midfielder who is absolutely outstanding, a guy that’s so good I’ve forgotten his name now, Jorginho, that’s the one, he’s a fantastic player,” said the television pundit.
“He’s improving with the players he’s playing with.”
Rosenior went on to praise Barkley’s decision in getting out of his comfort zone by moving to the bright lights of London instead of choosing to spend his whole career at the blue half of Merseyside.
“He’s shown bravery coming out of his comfort zone, he could have stayed at Everton for his whole career, but he’s gone to Chelsea wanting to improve as a player and he’s reaping the benefits,” added Rosenior.
