Sideways Sammy

Last season’s player of the year and someone who fans most feared losing to a Premier League club last summer, Ben Sheaf has had a difficult campaign this time out. Bearing the responsibility of being not just the captain of a struggling team but also often left to be both the team’s only defensive midfielder and primary playmaker, all while having to manage fitness issues that have dogged much of his time at the club, Sheaf is someone who has been put in a highly pressured position. While he cannot exactly be accused of shirking the responsibility, what seems to have become apparent is that Sheaf is not quite the character who excels at being the beating heart of a team.

Ben Sheaf looks to be figuring out this season what type of midfielder he really is exactly. If he is a defensive midfielder, some of his tackling and intercepting skills aren’t quite there. If he is a playmaker, his ability to get his head up and spot passes aren’t quite there. For someone who is clearly a very talented footballer, it feels a strange position for Sheaf to be in after 150 games at this football club. However, a lot of those appearances came with Gustavo Hamer alongside Sheaf to share the defensive and playmaking burden with. Moreover, last season and the start of this made it apparent that he isn’t quite capable of stepping up with the attacking contributions Hamer made, with Sheaf seemingly caught right now between accepting a limited defensive role yet still having that desire to make things happen around the opposing penalty area.

Frank Lampard looks to have instructed Ben Sheaf to play as a more defensive-minded player, often being the midfielder to drop into the back three to support the team’s build-up play. While that is a role that could be one that suits Sheaf’s skill-set, it has still forced him at times to take up playmaking responsibilities he isn’t quite suited to. A talented footballer no doubt, the past 18 months seem to have shown that Sheaf is the kind of player and personality that needs others around him to share responsibility with, rather than being someone who can drag a team forward by the scruff of the neck. It feels like Ben Sheaf may have plateaued and could do with either leaving the club or having team-mates brought in who can help bring the best out of him.