Rovers coach excited over Nyambe’s contract talks
…club has big plans for Namibian
NAMIBIAN defender Ryan Nyambe’s staggering development over the course of last season had many supporters in awe but the Blackburn Rovers right-back has taken it up a gear in the new campaign.
An assist in the opening Championship fixture against Bournemouth was a reward for the sheer endeavour and physicality to brisk past Adam Smith before picking out Adam Armstrong in the area, and Nyambe was excellent once more when Rovers encountered Premier League opposition in Newcastle United at St James’ Park.
The 22-year-old has quickly developed into a secret weapon for Rovers in attack and defensively there are very few that have got the better of Nyambe in one-on-one situations. Rovers have shifted an emphasis on developing and nurturing younger talents and Nyambe is clearly thriving in a learning environment that has been instilled at the Senior Training Centre.
As research suggests, happiness is likely to increase productivity and Rovers have invested significant time and resources to ensure their playing staff are treated to the best standard of coaching and equipment.
Nyambe’s development path is one that Rovers will want players from the Academy to follow, and on his current trajectory Rovers boss Tony Mowbray is excited for what Nyambe’s future has in store.
“We do a lot of work behind the scenes,” Mowbray told Lancs Live. “This is a club in development and looking to improve. Again, we’ve invested in a lot behind the scenes with touchscreen videos, these big plasma TV’s where you can move things around like on Monday Night Football.”
“It’s an education zone for footballers where every game, every training session is videod by drones – everything is an education really. Nyambe is someone with a lot of growth still left in him. I hope last Saturday is the start of a progression to becoming a top full-back. We know he’s got the strength and the power and the one-on-one defending capability, what he has to develop is his final third, his delivery and his ability to get in behind teams and pick the right pass.
“He needs to create goals and opportunities and add assists to his CV, really. You look at the peak of a Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robinson with huge assists for the Liverpool team - with Nyambe, while I don’t expect him to reach those numbers anytime soon, his target has to be to improve the number of assists and pick the right pass when he gets into the right areas because of his power and his pace.
“Of course that has to go hand-in-hand with the strikers and their ability to finding space in the box, and so there is a lot of work going on behind the scenes to make this team better.”
As for an update on a new contract for Nyambe, Mowbray insists the club is working on a new deal for the Namibian and several other members of the squad, as chief executive Steve Waggott claimed earlier in the month.
Nyambe’s current deal expires in the summer of 2021 and it’s expected that the right-back is in line for a bumper deal, given his current deal has him at the bottom end of Rovers’ wage spectrum. Contract talks are also being held with Bradley Dack, with the club looking to see if a deal can be agreed if not, a 12-month option and his current contract will be triggered.