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July 18, 2002 (Thursday) from Jonathan Woodgate
Club
Woodgate ready to
plug the gap
Jonathan Woodgate is poised to
put two traumatic years behind him and step into the defensive breach left by
Rio Ferdinand's likely defection from Leeds to Old Trafford.
The player, shamed and almost broken by the twice- held assault trial that
rocked the club, will now have the opportunity at 22 of a fresh start after
avoiding a jail sentence last winter.
It would be a daunting prospect for most centre halves to contemplate, following
in the stylish footsteps of a player who is considered to be the finest young
English defender of his generation.
Yet, while Terry Venables will inevitably seek a replacement, he will have no
qualms about Woodgate's ability to partner Dominic Matteo at the heart of Leeds'
back four in this coming Premiership season.
Venables said: 'I've had a good chat with Jon. He's convinced me he's in the
right frame of mind to pick up the threads of his career. He's had a tough time
but he wants to put what has happened behind him.
'He's fine and he'll be with us a long time. I mean to help him as much as
possible.'
Woodgate's pedigree as a centre half has never been in doubt. Indeed, former
manager David O'Leary believed Woodgate and Ferdinand were the future hub of
England's defence as well as Leeds', and that partnership could yet bloom under
Sven Goran Eriksson.
The reason why Woodgate has not yet added to his solitary cap against Bulgaria
in 1999 - and why he watched the World Cup on television - is also the reason
why he will be under such scrutiny as he steps back into the limelight.
He was found guilty of affray in the infamous retrial involving himself and Lee
Bowyer before suffering a broken jaw in a drunken incident in Middlesbrough.
More maturity off the pitch now, as well as on it, will earn
remorseful Woodgate a major role in Leeds' transition under Venables and the
England place that a patient Eriksson has kept warm through an FA ban.
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