Exeter’s performance demonstrates that a star among them is more vital than some may believe……..
- Derby County’s squad consists mostly of experienced players nearing the end of their careers.
- Nathaniel Mendez-Laing had a brilliant performance against Exeter City, scoring the opener and making four key passes.
- Mendez-Laing’s consistency throughout the season has been lacking, but his creativity and experience could be crucial for Derby’s success
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing had a brilliant game against Exeter City in Derby’s midweek game. He scored the opener, made four key passes, and received a Sofacore match rating of 9/10.
It was the Guatemalan international’s first time finding the back of the net in the 2023/24 League One campaign, and his experience and nous could really help them for the rest of the season.
Nathaniel Mendez-Laing’s season so far
His brilliance on Tuesday night didn’t exactly reflect his general performances of the season, so far. His consistency has wavered throughout the season, which is something that a team like Derby, who are expecting to be up at the top end of the league once 46 games have been played, can’t afford.
When you consider how well he played midweek, the fact that, in the league, he has an average match rating of 7.32 isn’t amazing. Prior to the nine that he received for the Exeter game, his average wasn’t far above a 7/10.
One thing that he has been is a creative threat, providing four assists in 13 league games in the current campaign. This puts him joint second in the league in that category. But there are still things that manager Paul Warne will be hoping that Mendez-Laing can improve on.
How Nathaniel Mendez-Laing can be a driving force for Derby County
What Rams fans will be hoping for is that he can find more of a groove in front of goal to combine with the chances he provides for others. He’s missed two big chances this season, which is the joint most in the squad.
Adding a clinical edge would make him a real force in the team, which could have a further ripple effect on his teammates.
When sides are preparing to face Derby, if they know that they have to put a lot of their focus on their right-hand side (where Mendez-Laing is likely to be) then that will open up space in other areas for the Rams’ other quality players to exploit.
If he can suck teams over to his side of the pitch, keeping the opposition occupied and taking them away from the likes of Max Bird, Conor Hourihane, or Martyn Waghorn, then it’s going to be hard for teams to stop Derby from creating chances.
Doing this would be a very selfless thing to do. If Mendez-Laing were a loanee in their early 20s, then having an approach like this would probably be quite unrealistic because players of that age wouldn’t necessarily have the maturity to do it.
But that’s where the benefit of having the experience of the Guatemalan comes in. He, and the other 30+ year-olds that usually make up half of the starting XI, will have the understanding of how personal sacrifice can help the team.
