We all saw what happened to Demicheles this week for Manchester City. For me this wasn’t the first sign of it either. The bottom line is he is not athletic, fast or mobile enough for the EPL or Champions League. I can remember a former Arsenal midfielder saying the EPL is not the place for players coming here after the age of 30. The pace and physical demands of the game are just to much. As a coach you should look at each case individually. Demicheles was never fast even in his 20’s so City should have known in his 30’s he would struggle. Giggs at United not only played his entire career in the EPL but he was fast and quick. As he got older he went from fast to average speed. Giggs adjusted his game and learned to be effective with less pace. Players like Ashley Cole have a longer career because they have speed to burn after 30! Then you have players like Beckham who never relied on speed but his conditioning was second to none. Lampard and Gerrard are two others you can say used their play making ability to make up for lack of pace after 30. However, Lampard and Gerrard were never Edgar Davids in the role they played. They did do a lot of work but they ran the show passing the ball. The 30+ player in the EPL has a place but only the right ones in the right positions. The Italian league for example would be a place for the over 30’s to do very well in. The pace is slower and easier for smart technical players. With the pace of the game in modern soccer old is becoming 30 in the EPL. If you do not serve a specific role with faster players around you then you can contribute longer. The players like Ashley Cole are just the rare gifted athletes who’s speed has not left them yet.
My thing is it doesn’t take a UEFA PRO License Coach to identify Demicheles is to slow. He is not even close to the level and I can’t see how they missed that one.