Jack Rodwell, the ex-Man City defensive midfielder has been training with the Revs according to Frank Dell’Apa of The Boston Globe. Rodwell began his career at Everton, making 85 appearances for the Merseyside, before his big move to Man City. He has also represented England at all levels. Sounds exciting, right? Well, let’s look a little deeper.
A Jack of all trades
Jack was one of the brightest sparks in the U21 England team that played between 2009-2012. His performances for England’s youth team and Everton, earned him pundits all over the place, especially for his versatility, being able to play as a centre-back, defensive midfielder and attacking midfielder. He moved to Man City for a fee of $18 million – which was a big deal a few years ago.
A master of none
Rodwell went on to make only 16 appearances for Man City in an injury plagues two seasons. He was shipped off to Sunderland in 2014, where he broke the record for the longest winless run in the Premier League; 39 matches and 1,370 days.
Rodwell, did not appear for Sunderland in the 2017-2018 season, when the club was relegated for the second time. He transferred to Blackburn Rovers, where he made 21 appearances. Perhaps this was why Rodwell, though not a lead candidate, was still the favorite in online casino betting.
Netflix’s ‘Til I Die
In the series that followed Sunderland for a season, Rodwell’s reputation took a battering. The midfielder seemed uninterested in the playing and indifferent to results. He seemed to spend most of the time languishing in the gym on his phone. At the end of the series, the then manager Chris Coleman said he did not know where the midfielder was ‘mentally’.
What we can expect
At twenty-eight the player should be in his prime, but recent performances suggest that we will get a shadow of the man that showed such promise when he was young. At Sunderland, he seemed more interested in his paycheck than playing. The US sportsbooks have Rodwell as likely to move to the US.