Rarely has a loaned-out Leicester City player attracted as much interest as Will Alves has at Cardiff.
After Alves showed his potential with his impressive dribbling and footwork for the academy, after he made his senior City debut aged 16, and after he suffered a serious injury as he neared his breakthrough, fans are desperate for him to succeed.
With City supporters feeling glum over this season’s relegation battle and with many already looking ahead to a campaign in the Championship next term, Alves’ performances have garnered a lot of attention in the hope that he can take his place in the squad.
His dribbling, close control and spatial awareness are all impressive traits. He rarely loses the ball, which is rare for a winger who trades on trying to beat people by taking risks.
It’s a shame he picked up a little injury midway through his time with Cardiff because I suspect he would have had a say in turning one or two games around.”
GW: “If I’m nit-picking – and I would be nit-picking here – perhaps just that clinical edge in front of goal.
Against Blackburn last weekend, he did brilliantly to round the goalkeeper, but you could almost feel that he had rarely been in that situation and his finishing instincts didn’t seem particularly natural. He allowed Aynsley Pears to get back into a position to save his shot, whereas he should have found the back of the net.
“It’s a good thing he atoned for that by sticking a lovely cross on top of Yakou Meite’s head for the winner, then!”
