Do we need more attacking options?

It seems teams know how to play us at home. Score first then sit back. If Pelle, Tadic and Mane are having a off day we are basically screwed (unless we get a lucky pen). Yes we have Long but that is it.

My question is, what do we need and how many?

 

Yes, but who doesn't?

 

Most teams have more then just two fit wide players.

 

It's a fair point, but I take issue with the "lucky" aspect of the penalties we should have had today. Both were clear cut chances, or would have been if Wollscheid hadn't fouled Pellè. Stoke were lucky, first that we weren't given both, and secondly that Wollscheid, their best defender, stayed on the pitch.

I do agree though, we need a target man and a pacy winger.

 

I think we need another goal scorer and another wide player. They could theoretically be the same person but we probably need two players.

We only really have Pelle and Mane who are likely to get 10 goals or more in a season. Long and Tadic aren't natural goal scorers so when Mane drops to the bench after an international break Pelle is the only serious goal threat.

We have Tadic and Mane who naturally fit out wide plus Long and JWP who can potentially do a job but that's not really enough.

I think the squad needs quality here though and I'd be surprised if we can find that in January.

 

Better is probably a more accurate word than more. We do have Juanmi, Gaston, Long and Jay in reserve to Tadic, Pelle and Mane. That's seven forward players when all available. But this is nothing new. I've been making this point for over 18 months now. Can anyone honestly say that they expected Juanmi to come on today and change the game? Is Long really any better than just an option off the bench for the last 30 minutes? (I should say that I think he is a very good option in this regard, but nothing more - he's rarely effective when he starts).

We haven't had a quality right winger since Chamberlain. We haven't had a quality back-up striker (for the level we're playing at at the time) since Sharp.

I think we had a top transfers window in terms of the other areas of the pitch - Virgil, Clasie, Cedric, Stek etc all get massive thumbs up. But I was so disappointed at our dealings in the forward department. I accept that this probably can't really be solved in January, but I pray that it finally is next summer.

 

No. We're eighth in the league, a win off fifth. We've lost one game today after a run of six unbeaten, six games from which we took 14 points. Even after today's game, we've had 14 points from 7 games. Two points a game is well inside top four performance.

Vin

 

I mean lucky as in the only way we could score. But yeah we should have had a pen today.

 

Davis, Van Dyjk and Fonte have all contributed goals this season. So has Yoshida.

So no. We're fine. If we need anything, maybe it's a right back; though I expect Cedric to come good eventually.

 

Juanmi has definitely been a disappointment so far. Yes, his opportunities have been limited, but I'd rather have Gaston off the bench than him at the moment.

Mane, Tadic & Pelle are our starters and as a club we don't have the resources to spend big on a player who may not even make the bench if everyone was fit.

We had Jay returning and although it was a gamble I don't think we could have got a player of his known quality to be back up. We had to go for someone with potential and thus far Juanmi has not delivered

 

Ryan Seager or bring back Sam G?

 

Pity we don't have a younger version of Guly. At the very least he was creative and offered plenty of options. Can we persuade Liverpool to loan us Lallana back?

 

Always nice to have spare, goal scoring, striker to bring into the team, but when the service is as poor as it was today, Ronaldo and Messi would be hard pushed to get on the score sheet.
We got the ball out wide so often, today, yet produced no crosses of any quality throughout. Many hit the first man, who more often than not, didn't even need to move to stop them. They were just hit straight at him, which was poor.
It would be good to uncover a target man, that can also run with the ball and create openings for himself, so hopefully the black box is already on that case.

 

It's not about others scoring goals it's about being able to change it up. If a team marks Pelle out the game then it takes a hell off a lot away from our game. If Tadic or Mane are having a poor game out wide, we have no one to come in and change it.

 

I didn't think Pelle played badly at all today, or was marked out of the game. The service to him was just crap.

 

That's what I am getting at. The service was crap but did we have anyone to come on and change it? No. This isn't about just todays game btw.

 

Stoke defended really well. We changed it up, and they still defended really well. We have plenty of options everywhere on the pitch. Except at full back.

 

TBH I would rather see Seagar than Juanmi coming off the bench...a fox in the box

 

I agree a Guly type would be ideal. Could play CF, in the hole or out wide if pushed. Surely our scouts should be able to unearth a gem from somewhere? If juanami is not going to play why don't we loan him out for 1/2 season? He's supposed to be 'one for the future' and needs game time.

Not sure if mentioned but why is Romeu not starting?

 

I don't think we have good options everywhere on the pitch.

Our backup to Pelle is Shane Long, who's a hard worker and will run his socks off but isn't much of a goal threat. He actually has a remarkably similar scoring record to Iain Dowie.
Our backup options in wide attacking areas are Jay Rodriguez (injured and nobody knows for sure how his injuries will affect his future performance levels) and a bunch of players who can do a job but are really playing out of position - Long, Ramirez, Juanmi, JWP, maybe Bertrand at a stretch.

Having said all that, our attacking play this season probably isn't much (if at all) worse than it was last season. We're conceding a lot more goals at home than we did last season though and that's cost us points. That may be something Koeman needs to look at more urgently.