The Curious Case of Ross Barkley
After picking the ball up inside his own half, driving into the heart of the Liverpool midfield and gliding past Fabinho, Ross Barkley smashed his shot past the helpless Adrian. This was a euphoric moment: the Evertonian had bagged his first goal against Liverpool at the 12th time of asking. Once upon a time this goal would have brought joy to the blue half of Merseyside. Yet in reality, only a few days later and now playing in the blue of Chelsea, Barkley provided two assists in a 4-0 drubbing of his former club. These performances appeared to mark a turning point for Barkley, who up until the ongoing suspension of all footballing activity had only made 13 Premier League appearances this season. At 26 years old, Barkley is entering the prime of his career, playing for a club who regularly compete in Champions League, and under a manager who happens to be the greatest goalscoring midfielder of all time; yet despite these favourable circumstances, his immediate future appears uncertain.
Before Barkley’s influential performances in wins against his fiercest rivals and boyhood club, his season had been dominated by off-the-field issues, crucial misses and disappointing form. On the face of it, the 2019-20 season only adds to the enigma that is Barkley’s career. After breaking into the Everton first team as a 17-year old and being widely dubbed the next Wayne Rooney, his career has not hit the heights many expected. Injuries have undoubtedly been a large factor in this, with Barkley’s Everton career starting and finishing with serious, long-term injuries. Niggling problems at Chelsea have also restricted him to just over 40 appearances in 2 years. However, despite these struggles, Barkley has had a hand in 50 Premier League goals throughout his career (24 goals and 26 assists in 192 games), won 33 England caps and been selected for World Cup and European Championship squads. Crucially, at the age of 26, many chapters of his footballing story are yet to be written.
When the footballing season resumes, Barkley’s primary objective must be to secure his position in Chelsea first XI. However, given the form and preference shown to Mason Mount and the emerging Billy Gilmour, this will be no easy task. Looking ahead to next season, competition at Chelsea will only increase with the arrival of Hakim Ziyech and the full-return of Ruben Loftus-Cheek. Alongside this, Barkley is also facing the dauting prospect of fighting for his international future. Despite scoring 4 goals for England in 2019, lack of game time and form at club level has led to a steep fall down the England midfield pecking order. However, with the Euros now rearranged for 2021, Barkley has a further 12 months to silence his doubters and secure his seat on the plane. This opportunity pushes Barkley’s club future into the limelight: should he stay at Chelsea and try to prove he is good enough to warrant a regular starting spot, or leave and try to revitalise his career elsewhere?
Although every footballer is motivated by different things, most share one common motivation: the desire to play as much football as possible over their relatively short career. Realistically, a new challenge may be Barkley’s best option. It would give him the game-time needed to recapture the form that made the whole of English football so excited about his initial breakthrough and provide him with the platform to consistently demonstrate his undeniably talent. Whatever happens, these next 18 months are likely to define his career.