David Beckham is one of the best examples of a player who turned his career around after tumbling into a deep hole.
Beckham was pilloried 24 years ago when many England fans blamed his stupid red card for the Three Lions’ heartbreaking exit to Argentina at France '98. Effigies of the midfielder were hung outside pubs in London and it felt like he had become public enemy No1.
Fast forward three years and his stunning stoppage-time free-kick against Greece secured England’s place at the 2002 World Cup, and suddenly he had replaced St George as the nation’s new patron saint. Although not as dramatic, Dwight McNeil is enduring the first rut of his career and he is struggling to reproduce the form that made him one of the most-exciting young wingers in the Premier League.
McNeil has come under fire from some Burnley fans who are frustrated with his performances, and he has managed just one assist from his 30 appearances this season. Sean Dyche has backed the wide man to come good and has cited to him how Beckham turned the jeers to cheers all those years ago.
“He’s a terrific player, he’s having a tough season, his first real tough spell, although I think a lot of his season has been good,” said the Clarets boss. “That’s the challenge of being a younger player who has played a lot of football coming through. It’s part of his development, most have been through it.
“Legends of the game, there was a time when they were hanging effigies of David Beckham outside of pubs and he was a young player at the time. That was part of his career coming through it and he was even more legendary after that. The challenge is right in front of him. But he’s a very, very good young player. He’s still young and he’s played a lot of football in the Premier League.”
Dyche feels McNeil is partly a victim of his own success because he established himself in the Burnley team as a teenager. He is still only 22 and Dyche feels his critics sometimes forget he is still learning his trade.
“We see these young players and we pre-suppose 'why aren’t they doing this, why aren’t they doing that?'” said Dyche. “You don’t know what you don’t know. He’s still learning and there’s lots to learn in football when you’re a young player and he’s still going through that process.
“Because he’s played a lot of football, especially for a young player, we all pre-suppose he should be doing this and that, but he’s still learning the game.”
Dyche is pleased that McNeil has never gone missing through his sticky patch and says these tough times will improve him as a player.
“One of his biggest strengths is not hiding, he will go and have the ball, he will want the ball,” he said.
“This period now, it’s awkward for him, but it will do him good in the long run. You have to go through these challenges to round yourself and form yourself. It’s all part of his future, coming through this period.”
