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Newcastle United unlikely to recall Elias Sorensen

Is adversity what the player needs, or playing time?

Blackpool v Arsenal - FA Cup Third Round Photo by Mark Robinson/Getty Images

Sometimes, facing a struggle is great for player development. They respect the game more, and they respect what it takes to get to where you are. So many players struggle for playing time that when they get it, they relish the moment. A lot of times with young upstarts like Elias Sorensen, there is no way they can manage to force themselves into the starting XI for a Premier League club, so they’re loaned out to a club in the lesser leagues.

In this case, it’s Blackpool. So far this season, Sorensen has only played around 32 minutes of first-team football for Blackpool, and he’s been told to be patient by Blackpool manager, Terry McPhillips.

So what does this mean for the young starlet that has all the Newcastle United fans buzzing?

The loan deal will likely be seen as a failure

As much as I love the idea of watching a player fight for his place within a squad, seeing a player from Newcastle who needs every minute he can get to prime him for Premier League football not get playing time is painful to see. Blackpool loaned in Sorensen knowing that the expectation from both Rafa Benitez and higher ups at Newcastle was that the player was going to get quality playing time with the club.

This may affect how Rafa sees the young starlet. Is he a player who felt entitled to playing time with a League One club? Was he not good enough to dethrone a measly League One striker? How about the fact that Sorensen hasn’t even been selected for a match day squad? All these things can not only affect the way that people see how his loan went, but it can affect the most important thing.

Sorensen may suffer from a lack of confidence

The loan deal is going to be seen as a failure, and the confidence level of Elias Sorensen could take a hit as a result. If he couldn’t make the starting squad of a League One club (yeah the same league as Sunderland) how can he possibly expect to make the starting squad of a Premier League club in Newcastle United?

Newcastle need Sorensen to feel like that player scoring goal after goal again. If he’s not at a high level of confidence it could damage more than just his ability on the pitch, but his ability to grow and learn more.

Newcastle should but won’t recall him

It would be a waste now to recall someone this close to the end of the season. Newcastle will likely have Sorensen ride out the end of the season, whether it be on the bench or him fighting his way to earning a starting spot, even if it is the last match of the season.

But Newcastle also need to treat Sorensen as if he is the future of their offense. Until the club have had enough time to truly gauge the talent level and ceiling of Elias Sorensen, he needs be a priority for the club. They cannot loan him and leave it at that. It’s not as if the club is telling him he has no future.

We can loan Rolando Aarons and leave him be, playing time or no because he has no future nor position at the club. But Sorensen is different, and thus should be treated differently.