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Our much vaunted "midfield goal machine" still includes Mahon and Legs. And Buzz who is still working back to full match sharpness. And as a result has actually managed a goal in the two games that matter, against some of the weaker teams in the CCC.
Our goal return in the league, despite a load of chances, is two, one of which was a fluke.
Yesterday, and this is the crux of the matter, no obvious chances missed (apart from one), suggesting the majority of chances are coming through the middle, shots from in and around the edge of the box from midfielders. The final ball is missing though. Why? Because our strikers aren't good enough to get behind the opposition defence. They aren't good enough to create space for the midfield to run into. Good strikers get their markers into positions they don't want to be in. They constantly gamble on what might happen to get an edge on their markers. They force defenders to constantly react to what they have done, rather than the other way round. Basically, good strikers have the attitude that every time the ball comes forward, they want to score, and will use all their skill and experience to force that to happen.
There is a reason that strikers cost so much more than players in other positions. Their value to their team is so much greater than any other player. We don't have a striker worthy of the name, with the possible exception of Pellicori, because they do not cause enough difficulty to the opposition defence.
We've got a decent team and squad that is being held back by the lack of a quality striker. There's no gaurantees that if you buy the world's greatest striker, he will score goals for you. He could break his leg tomorrow. But it's pretty much guaranteed that if you have a substandard set of strikers, it will cost the club. Only two games gone, and already that cost is four points. There's no way round it. We need at least one quality striker (quality at this level), ideally two, or we need to accept midtable is the best we'll do.
Our goal return in the league, despite a load of chances, is two, one of which was a fluke.
Yesterday, and this is the crux of the matter, no obvious chances missed (apart from one), suggesting the majority of chances are coming through the middle, shots from in and around the edge of the box from midfielders. The final ball is missing though. Why? Because our strikers aren't good enough to get behind the opposition defence. They aren't good enough to create space for the midfield to run into. Good strikers get their markers into positions they don't want to be in. They constantly gamble on what might happen to get an edge on their markers. They force defenders to constantly react to what they have done, rather than the other way round. Basically, good strikers have the attitude that every time the ball comes forward, they want to score, and will use all their skill and experience to force that to happen.
There is a reason that strikers cost so much more than players in other positions. Their value to their team is so much greater than any other player. We don't have a striker worthy of the name, with the possible exception of Pellicori, because they do not cause enough difficulty to the opposition defence.
We've got a decent team and squad that is being held back by the lack of a quality striker. There's no gaurantees that if you buy the world's greatest striker, he will score goals for you. He could break his leg tomorrow. But it's pretty much guaranteed that if you have a substandard set of strikers, it will cost the club. Only two games gone, and already that cost is four points. There's no way round it. We need at least one quality striker (quality at this level), ideally two, or we need to accept midtable is the best we'll do.
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