He's not really, how many 17-18 year olds centre midfielders come in and do the job he's done? Very few, if any, his ability and attitude is spot on and he will go very far in the game if he avoids injury. It's not like people dismiss his weaknesses, he has alot of work to do on his defensive game, and he's far from the finished article.
He does make alot of short sideways passes, so does Arteta. Knitting things together, controlling the tempo, retaining possession, building attacks. That's a big part of football, that's a big part of being a holding midfielder. And it's not just his passing, his ability to turn and move with the ball is also on a different level to those around him.
As Brownie said, we really are asking a 18 year old to protect our back four and be our most creative centre midfielder - simply because those infront of them haven't got the creative qualities needed to play the role. Rodwell isn't a true creative player, he's just the best footballer out of the three we currently have in there.
On Heitinga, he does have a very good long pass but he's got a long way to go for me, one good performance and one very average performance so far. You've got to have the mobility on the ball and the ability to create space for yourself so you can use that passing ability.
If he can do that more than once then we'll be able to give the likes of Rodwell, Cahill and Fellaini a rest every now and then. I hope he does, because I have seen some Xabi Alonso esque passes from him, the majority of them coming with no pressure on him though, as a centre back.
