Stats by Levin, updated by Interista93
Name: Ronald Andrew Whelan
Nickname: "Ronnie"
Country:
IrelandClub: Liverpool F.C.
Position: *SMF, CMF
Side: RF/BS (mainly left side)
Age: 23-26 years (25/09/1961)
Height: 175 cm
Weight: 76 kg
Attack: 77
Defence: 72
Balance: 82
Stamina: 88
Top Speed: 76
Acceleration: 77
Response: 83
Agility: 79
Dribble Accuracy: 74
Dribble Speed: 76
Short Pass Accuracy: 85
Short Pass Speed: 81
Long Pass Accuracy: 83
Long Pass Speed: 80
Shot Accuracy: 78
Shot Power: 84
Shot Technique: 81
Free Kick Accuracy: 75
Curling: 84
Header: 78
Jump: 81
Technique: 83
Aggression: 77
Mentality: 84
Goalkeeper Skills: 50
Team Work: 84
Injury Tolerance: B
Condition: 7
Weak Foot Accuracy: 5
Weak Foot Frequency: 5
Consistency: 6
Growth type: Standard
CARDS:
P11 - Long Ranger
S01 - Marauding
S02 - Passer
S05 - 1-touch Play
SPECIAL ABILITIES: Reaction - Passing - Middle Shooting - 1-touch Play
Attack/Defence Awareness Card: Balanced
INFO:
Whelan is a former side or central midfielder, primarily on the left, and occasionally deployed in other positions. He spent almost his entire career at Liverpool, making 493 appearances from 1981 to 1994, scoring 73 goals. He played also for Home Farm in his early years and Southend United before retiring in 1996. He capped for Ireland 54 times, scoring 3 goals.
A skillful, hardworking but not too spectacular midfielder, Whelan was known for his intelligent play, terrific ball distribution and the ability to do the incredible when the team needed him the most. Therefore, he became a mainstay at Liverpool for many years. He dominated his flank well, controlling the tempo of the game, showing positional sense and game reading ability. He was notably efficient in the offense as he could run down the side despite lacking of great pace and surge forward, scoring with his powerful right foot and sometimes with headers. When he started playing more in a central midfield role due to the arrival of John Barnes, the Irish midfielder had more responsibility and even though he had to push forward less, he enjoyed the new position that allowed him to keep being involved all the time while being more defensive. Whelan himself once said that he played in the middle of the field to win the ball back, reading and breaking the opposition's play, and while he couldn't dribble, he had an accurate passing so that he could quickly start an attack for his team. His lack of speed often troubled him as he could run on the ball when he had space and usually couldn't overcome opponents one-on-one because his bursts of acceleration were too short and allowed his opponents to get back to him easily.
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