The thing it, plenty of teams play good football but still have players that can score a header. Southampton are the best example. Their strikers Lambert and Do Prado are massive and wouldn't look out of place in a big ugly side but they have them playing in a proper footballing team and get balls in from good positions. They don't play long ball but they football with big strikers. It seems the best way to me. But as you say, with Koren there is a very limited number of ways to play.
Yes it would be good to give Simpson a try, I mean he can't do any worse than McClean and Fryatt at missing the onion bag
I'm just going from the fact that when I've seen King have a good game he's been playing up front with his back to goal. It needs the wide players to actually be prepared to go behind the opposition defence and come inside while they do though. Defence in a line, King playing level and between "Chester" and "Hobbs" (I guess it'll be easier to picture if I use our backline). Play Koren about 15 yards behind him, and the two wide men on the full backs. When the ball comes to King one of the centrebacks will be with him, let's say it's "Hobbs". King then has the option of laying it off to Koren, or putting it between "Hobbs" and "Dawson" for McLean to run onto. Obviously if it were "Chester" coming he'd go the other way for Stewart to run onto. That done you've got McLean/Stewart going through on goal, the centrebacks scrambling back, King holds a few yards back for a cut back. The other option is to lay it off to Koren, depending on distance from goal it's either a long range strike or trying to feed balls through to Stewart/McLean. King is the only player in the squad that I've seen play that role and play it well. Everytime I've seen him playing wide he looks like he's being played out of position, but I might be looking for that because when I saw him upfront he didn't look like he could be a winger.
Nicky please try this ------------Mannone rosie--Hobbs---Chester--Dawson ----Olofinjana---Mckenna -------------Koren ---Mclean-----------Simpson --------------King
Why on earth do we insist on playing strikers on the wing? It just narrows the game up and allows sides to dominate and diminish any attacking threat we really have. I would play both Brady and Stewart wide with King or Fryatt up top with Koren behind the striker. That way we can see two proper wingers playing and see the real benefit to playing 4-2-3-1.
We have two good wingers but Brady is one of these modern ones who is better at playing on his wrong side than being an out and out winger, so while we have loads of players who can play there, we still don't have many options who are specialised wingers. I think if we had pulled off the Hamill deal it would have helped us have that proper wide balance.
Is hammill still at Wolves and is there any chance of a loan deal still happening, maybe OLM has some news on this and potetial loanees coming in.
we've tried brady and stewart and it didn't do that well if i remember... and unfortunately they're the two wingers we have left... Someone will call me crazy but I'd like to try without Koren. I don't think he is as good as some make him to be and I don't like the idea that we're shoehorning 2/3 players because of him. I'm not a fan whatsoever of the 4-2-3-1... can we do a proper 4-3-3 if we're keeping it narrow and on the floor or to a 4-4-2 with the two wingers and two strikers up front.
I think that if your strikers are so bad that it's pointless making chances for them, and your only chance of scoring is a 20-yarder from one particular player, it's probably worth playing that player. There'd be no point dropping him for a second striker if the second striker misses every chance just like the first does.
Yeh but we never have two strikers up front these days... the more you have in the box the likelier you are to score? Koren is a bit overrated imo. And most of the feedback from the doncaster game was that we were playing too much hoping he'd deliver. as in "pass to robbie" instead of " I might have a crack"
Seriously are you suggesting our strikers will never ever score again in their career? mclean, simpson and fryatt have all scored plenty in the past. Doesn't matter the context or the league, they know how to kick a ball and beat the keeper. We gotta stick at it. Something's obviously not right but playing one striker and hoping tho bang the goals in is DAFT
But the chances are happening, it's just the strikers are missing them. It's just a chance conversion issue, simpler than it seems.
mines pretty standard but i want to see a Stewart and Simpson partnership , see how it goes with an option of getting King on for any of the three main attackers . One thing i wouldnt want to see is dropping our defensive midfield pair to sacrifice for 2 strikers , Manonne Rosenior - Hobbs - Chester - Dawson McKenna - - Evans Mclean - - Koren - - Stewart Simpson subs - Carson , Oli , Cooper ,Brady and King
I know Fryatt doesn't seem the most prolific goal scorer, but both Koren and him are on 8 goals and there are only three players above 10 goals. So if most of the top scorers are on 10, 9 or 8 this doesn't cry out that he is a poor goal scorer. We are also only about half way through the season so at this rate he would be a 16 goals a season - not too bad. What he needs is someone to pass him the ball where he can do some good with it. Not sure how someone can suggest playing King as lone stiker after Tuesday's performance. As much as I approve of his work rate I would drop McLean. On the right, we either punt the ball up to him so he has his back to the goal, or he comes back to half way for it. However, Dawson/Simpson on the left seems to be played more on the floor. I'd be tempted to play 4-5-1 and give Brady or Garcia a try.