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Soccer

"Is he committed to playing at this level?" | Kelly casts doubt over Luke Shaw's hunger

Giving the appearance of a team on the rise as they recorded a 4-0 defeat of Chelsea on Sunday af...



Soccer

"Is he committed to playing at this level?" | Kelly casts doubt over Luke Shaw's hunger

Giving the appearance of a team on the rise as they recorded a 4-0 defeat of Chelsea on Sunday afternoon, Stephen Kelly identified Luke Shaw as a potential headache for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Manchester United. 

It is somewhat surprising, perhaps, that Luke Shaw commenced his sixth season with Manchester United against Chelsea on the Premier League's opening weekend.

A spell blighted by injury and inconsistency, the prospect of the 24-year-old full-back fulfilling his potential remains a topic of some debate.

"I just don't know if he's good enough," conceded Stephen Kelly on Monday's OTB AM, "sometimes you really think he's a fantastic footballer."

Citing the Englishman's ability to drive forward with the ball and his technical proficiency as evidence of what is going in Luke Shaw's favour, issues within the former Southampton man's game are not easily explained away.

"Defensively, his positioning is questionable," the former Tottenham Hotspur and Fulham full-back suggested, "he should have improved on that more than he has.

"Then there is always that question regarding his fitness.

"Sometimes you look at him and he does look overweight. Is he fully committed to playing at the top level?"

A criticism that has been consistently leveled at Shaw, Stephen Kelly gave the impression that United would perhaps have been better served looking elsewhere.

"All in all he's a good player, but had Manchester United been able to get someone like Danny Rose, they'd have a much better player than Luke Shaw,

"That Ashley Young, a makeshift full-back, was able to take Luke Shaw's place with Manchester United and England says a lot about him."

Having emerged from last year's opening Premier League tie as man-of-the-match in United's defeat of Leicester City, Luke Shaw will be aware that strong outings like those on Sunday guarantee little of the season ahead.

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Chelsea Luke Shaw Manchester United Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Premier League