Yankuba Minteh’s potential at Brighton is large: tempo and dedication are key, says Gambia boss Johnathan McKinstry | Soccer information

Yankuba Minteh was one of many stars of the early Premier League season earlier than damage disrupted his progress. However there are indicators that Brighton’s summer time signing from Newcastle is able to make a distinction for his facet in 2025.

A constructive efficiency off the bench within the Seagulls’ draw at Aston Villa locations him firmly in Fabian Hurzeler’s ideas for Saturday’s go to of Arsenal. The Gunners are in good type however any opponent will wrestle to cope with a flying Minteh.

The winger brings one thing totally different. Clocked at a high pace of 35.38 kilometers per hour, he’s his staff’s quickest participant, the one Brighton participant within the 50 quickest within the Premier League this season. It’s such a helpful weapon, the idea of 1’s creativity.

Johnathan McKinstry is Minteh’s head coach at worldwide degree with Gambia. This skill to run away from individuals is particular. “Basically, he has a very powerful trait for an offensive participant in soccer, and that’s pace,” McKinstry mentioned. Aerial sports activities.

“If you happen to speak to defenders, no matter their degree, what they hate to play towards is actual tempo. You do not want all of the methods on this planet. If you happen to can push the ball into the house and having that acceleration to overhaul somebody, that causes a variety of issues for opponents.

Minteh ranks fourth for tried dribbles within the Premier League this season and eleventh for profitable crosses. There have been additionally just a few targets, within the victory towards Tottenham and later at Leicester. He has this uncommon expertise for making issues occur.

Maybe surprisingly given the standard of Hurzeler’s facet, it’s Minteh who has essentially the most anticipated assists per 90 minutes of any Brighton participant this season. It’s the 20-year-old winger, not Kaoru Mitoma or Joao Pedro, who most frequently creates probabilities.

There are facets of his recreation that he nonetheless must work on, that’s clear. It may be messy at occasions, every little thing occurs so rapidly that the precision required, particularly within the ultimate third of the pitch the place decision-making is so essential, will not be all the time evident.

For instance, it’s much less stunning to notice that he loses the ball extra usually than his teammates. Though Minteh makes an attempt many dribbles, the proportion of them which might be profitable is among the many lowest among the many greatest dribblers within the Premier League.

However then, is not that predictable? Minteh didn’t arrive from a Premier League academy. He solely signed for Danish membership OB in the summertime of 2022, involving himself sparingly earlier than impressing at Feyenoord on mortgage from Newcastle final season.

Brighton had been paying huge cash for a participant whose potential Eddie Howe had insisted he believed however was compelled to promote for monetary causes – but it surely was nonetheless potential they had been shopping for. It’s encouraging to see that Minteh is decided to enhance.

Even earlier than he debuted, Hurzeler described him as a “position mannequin” for the opposite members of the group due to the way in which he accepted calls for, akin to counter-pressing. Minteh now ranks within the high 10 for possessions received within the ultimate third per 90 minutes.

“Yankuba has actual dedication,” says McKinstry.

“Generally the problem for a coach with younger gamers going into skilled soccer is that with fame and funds it’s straightforward to get distracted. However with younger Gambian gamers, together with Yankuba, there’s has iron dedication.

“We all the time speak in regards to the challenges of the academy system in Europe, the place gamers are possibly given every little thing very early, whereas a variety of younger Gambian gamers had been nonetheless in Gambia till they had been 17 or 18 years previous.

“These gamers had been taking part in within the nationwide league, which is principally an novice league, in order that they needed to battle with adults. They’re there at 17, getting crushed up, having to discover ways to survive soccer on this surroundings.

“The nice factor is that once they come to a membership within the Premier League, Bundesliga, Serie A, they do not take it without any consideration. They’ve already skilled the powerful facet of soccer, so on this surroundings good and vivid, they know they must work for it.

“Our younger gamers, once they lose, they hate it, they completely hate it. There are not any smiles, they do not chortle and so they do not joke if they do not get the consequence they need, it which, once more, is a refreshing factor as a coach to have that mindset in your younger gamers.

And Minteh stays a younger participant, solely turning 21 in July. There are solely seven gamers youthful than him who’ve began as many Premier League video games this season and all however two are English. The training curve was steep. However he learns.

“You do not swim on this sea of ​​sharks that’s the Premier League with out being very demanding of your self,” provides McKinstry. “He is off to an excellent begin, however a very powerful one who must know that is only the start is him. And he is aware of it.

“He is aware of he’s solely 20 years previous and there’s nonetheless a variety of work to do to proceed on this path, simply to be within the beginning XI. He’s already an essential participant however he desires to study as many individuals as doable are round him and it is so refreshing.”

Anticipate Minteh to take the following step in 2025.

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