Salomon Rondon can elevate his career and build a new reputation with Newcastle United.
Salomon Rondon has the potential to become a great striker at Newcastle United. The Venezuelan international brings with him three years of Premier League experience, but he does not have impressive statistics to go with it.
The reason for this is the club and managers he played for. Rondon’s form and style of play took a major hit under Tony Pulis and Alan Pardew while they were in charge at West Brom. Both managers had a tendency to isolate Rondon up the field while his supporting cast were chasing the ball in the opposite end of the field.
When looking at Rondon’s numbers prior to joining West Brom, the 28-year-old showed that he can be a reliable striker when he has proper support. Here are some of Rondon’s statistics from previous years:
- Malaga – 25 goals in 67 appearances
- Rubin Kazan – 13 goals in 36 appearances
- Zenit Saint Petersburg – 20 goals in 37 appearances
- West Brom – 24 goals in 108 appearances
Rondon’s Potential
It remains to be seen if Rafa Benitez will play Rondon and Yoshinori Muto together or will only play one striker at a time. Regardless of the formation used by Benitez, Rondon will have plenty of scoring opportunities at Newcastle.
With a midfield comprised of talented players who can pass the ball well, Rondon will feel comfortable on the front-line at Newcastle compared to West Brom. The new number nine for Newcastle will only have to do two things well in order to succeed with the Magpies.
Firstly, Rondon must create passing lanes for himself by maintaining good movement off the ball. Jonjo Shelvey, Matt Ritchie and Kenedy are superior ground and aerial passers so it will be up to Rondon to create sufficient space for a shot.
Secondly, Rondon will need to develop and maintain consistency. Ever since the departures of Papiss Cisse and Demba Ba, Newcastle have not had a reliable forward who can strike the ball with precision. Rondon was consistent at West Brom with eight goals per season, but the style of play at the Hawthornes also placed a ceiling on his level of contribution.
In the eyes of most pundits, Rondon is a decent striker who can play in the top flight, but cannot have a meaningful impact. However, that perspective is based on his mediocre statistics with West Brom. Under the guidance of Benitez at Newcastle, Rondon will post the best numbers of his career.