Speaking to Football FanCast, former Newcastle United defender Steve Howey has claimed summer signing Jeff Hendrick has gone ‘quiet’ of late.
“He has gone a little bit quiet since the West Ham game,” he said in the exclusive interview.
“I mean, I think it was a decent signing when you get him for free but you’re not getting him for free because, obviously, there’s the wage there.”
Indeed, it’s hard to disagree with him, but perhaps the Irishman’s performance against Wolves hints at a different role.
While his debut away at West Ham saw him register a goal and an assist, the injuries to both Isaac Hayden and Jonjo Shelvey saw Hendrick revert to more of a deep-lying role alongside Miguel Almiron away at Molineux.
Over the course of what proved to be a fairly miserable afternoon aside from a late Jacob Murphy leveller and one which bored Sky pundit Kieron Dyer, the former Burnley man proved resilient. Making three tackles (the most of any Toon player) and hitting the mark with all four of his long balls (via WhoScored), the 28-year-old was an effective deep-lying maker.
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Naturally, the deeper he plays means he’s unlikely to score and assist as regularly and, of course Howey is generally right given we’re taking one game in isolation, but perhaps Hendrick has found a new role to excel in.