foxes21 Posted 19 September 2016 Author Share Posted 19 September 2016 30 minutes ago, adejo92 said: I personally think Okazaki is a quality player with great work rate. Unfortunatly for him, his responsibility is to score goals and that doesn't seem to be something he can do regularly. Okazaki role isn't that of a normal striker though. If he never played as a striker before he came to us, people wouldn't have this mentality about him. If you look at our champions league squad, Okazaki is listed as a midfielder. He plays more like a CAM, than a striker for us. A list of Okazaki's main responsibilities when he plays: Main responsibility: Defensive contribition. Secondary responsibility: Linking the play & creating space for Mahrez & Vardy through running/movement. Third responsibility: Score/Assist Okazaki's contribution last season was unorthodox. Whilst we are used to assists counting when someone passes to the goalscorer, Okazaki assisted plenty in terms of creating the space for the goalscorer to even have a chance of shooting. When you look at his stats the automatic assumption is he doesn't score/assist enough. But if you look at the finer details, without Okazaki's runs/movement we wouldn't have scored a third of our goals last season. 30 minutes ago, adejo92 said: Slimani is a whole new class but i still appreciate Okazaki and think he would be a great player to bring on for those tiring defenders! Agreed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AjcW Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 Surprised this thread wasn't bumped last night.... hear me out okay.... The one thing we are missing this season is a little engine that runs round the midfield annoying and closing down opposition players... we're also missing a goalscoring centre midfielder. I don't think it'll ever happen but i'd love to see a Shinji & DD partnership with Amartey sitting just behind. On a side note I thought he was fantastic last night and I look forward to many more bundled in goals! He was the first in a line of wrong substitutions yesterday and I think if he'd stayed on he'd have bagged a third. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col city fan Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 I find some of the criticism of this fella on here hard to fathom? (Then again. It is FT...). There are far far bigger issues with this squad than to bang on about Shinji not being good enough. What the Hell we would do if Christian Fuchs picks up an injury, for example. And if Huth gets sidelined for any length of time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manwell Pablo Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 3 minutes ago, Col city fan said: I find some of the criticism of this fella on here hard to fathom? (Then again. It is FT...). There are far far bigger issues with this squad than to bang on about Shinji not being good enough. What the Hell we would do if Christian Fuchs picks up an injury, for example. And if Huth gets sidelined for any length of time. Surely no one is actually doing that are they A) He's just scored a brace B) He was ever present in a title winning team so clearly not a problem C) He's not even in the first XI at the moment anyway. Silly season in full swing this morning, nothing like a good defeat to bring out the utterly ludicrous comments. Might have to bring back Manwell Pablo's quotes of the week if this carries on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babylon Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 On 19/09/2016 at 22:40, foxes21 said: But if you look at the finer details, without Okazaki's runs/movement we wouldn't have scored a third of our goals last season. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Koke Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 2 hours ago, AjcW said: Surprised this thread wasn't bumped last night.... hear me out okay.... The one thing we are missing this season is a little engine that runs round the midfield annoying and closing down opposition players... we're also missing a goalscoring centre midfielder. I don't think it'll ever happen but i'd love to see a Shinji & DD partnership with Amartey sitting just behind. On a side note I thought he was fantastic last night and I look forward to many more bundled in goals! He was the first in a line of wrong substitutions yesterday and I think if he'd stayed on he'd have bagged a third. Okazaki as a CM???? He's control is poor, his first touch is diabolical, his passing is erratic. He had zero assists last season. Yeah he works hard and hassles opposition players but you need much more than that to be a semi decent CM. Okazaki belongs to the bench as a cover for Slimani and Vardy. He played well last night before anyone slates me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AjcW Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 1 minute ago, Koke said: Okazaki as a CM???? He's control is poor, his first touch is diabolical, his passing is erratic. He had zero assists last season. Yeah he works hard and hassles opposition players but you need much more than that to be a semi decent CM. Okazaki belongs to the bench as a cover for Slimani and Vardy. He played well last night before anyone slates me. More of a floating advanced midfielder.. with amartey/mendy as a stand there and dictate things DM. Just a thought, I get your points about his touch though, one thing he has done over the summer is pack a serious amount of muscle though, so he is definitely stronger. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxy boxing Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 great to see him score a couple of goals, he really deserves it works tirelessly for the team and great to see him get on the scoresheet. we want more shinji so score score score Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Royston. Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 it was surreal seeing him score twice in one game! had a big smile on my face though, wasnt the usual yarrggh!!!! - get the fúck in!! just really pleased for him Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finnegan Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 1 hour ago, Babylon said: Other than his use of hyperbole, which I took to be deliberate, why is that funny, exactly? He was and still is the perfect foil to Vardy. Does a lot of the graft in the 10 spot, links up well, bothers defenders, helps win the ball back, had a role to play in a lot of goals last season. He's unconventional and a little awkward looking but he's also a top level professional, has stacks of caps and goals for his country, has been playing in Europe's top league for years, came here with a good pedigree and has fit in our system brilliantly. I'm not really sure why people treat him frequently as an object of ridicule or as some kind of funny mascot, quite frankly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manwell Pablo Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 1 minute ago, Finnegan said: Other than his use of hyperbole, which I took to be deliberate, why is that funny, exactly? He was and still is the perfect foil to Vardy. Does a lot of the graft in the 10 spot, links up well, bothers defenders, helps win the ball back, had a role to play in a lot of goals last season. He's unconventional and a little awkward looking but he's also a top level professional, has stacks of caps and goals for his country, has been playing in Europe's top league for years, came here with a good pedigree and has fit in our system brilliantly. I'm not really sure why people treat him frequently as an object of ridicule or as some kind of funny mascot, quite frankly. Yeah but it's silly argument isn't it. We take Okazaki's movement out? So what are we playing with 10 men? Obviously we are going to score less, or are we putting someone else in? Who's to say they aren't going to take people out of play with their movement as well. Love the bloke, should be third in line pushing either of the first two to perform for me but that's not really a very good point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DelBoy73 Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 He is your poor's man James Milner. A fantastic work horse but with hardly any quality end product. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foxes21 Posted 21 September 2016 Author Share Posted 21 September 2016 12 minutes ago, Manwell Pablo said: Yeah but it's silly argument isn't it. We take Okazaki's movement out? So what are we playing with 10 men? Obviously we are going to score less, or are we putting someone else in? Who's to say they aren't going to take people out of play with their movement as well. Love the bloke, should be third in line pushing either of the first two to perform for me but that's not really a very good point. The difference is his runs are intelligent. Ulloa & Kramaric wouldn't have made the same runs Okazaki did last year because they didn't have the same energy/workrate/intelligence to do so. Slimani is a great signing because he can do all of that and then some. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest CityFan 06 Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 Thought he was great last night. Although cliched, he links play up so well and it was good for him to get on the scoresheet twice. I was impressed with Ulloa when he came on as well, he's looked alright recently, very tidy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Manwell Pablo Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 3 minutes ago, foxes21 said: The difference is his runs are intelligent. Ulloa & Kramaric wouldn't have made the same runs Okazaki did last year because they didn't have the same energy/workrate/intelligence to do so. Slimani is a great signing because he can do all of that and then some. Ulloa isn't a stupid footballer he's just immobile but I get your point, I would say Kramaric we haven't seen enough of to say what runs he would and wouldn't make. But I think the claim his runs are that of some sort of footballing genius are way wide of the mark myself, they are the sort of runs you expect, you pay 7-8 million pound for a player you should be expecting the least he does is make some good runs. It's a footballing fundamental. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Babylon Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 36 minutes ago, Finnegan said: Other than his use of hyperbole, which I took to be deliberate, why is that funny, exactly? He was and still is the perfect foil to Vardy. Does a lot of the graft in the 10 spot, links up well, bothers defenders, helps win the ball back, had a role to play in a lot of goals last season. He's unconventional and a little awkward looking but he's also a top level professional, has stacks of caps and goals for his country, has been playing in Europe's top league for years, came here with a good pedigree and has fit in our system brilliantly. I'm not really sure why people treat him frequently as an object of ridicule or as some kind of funny mascot, quite frankly. Exactly for that reason, and because we've been through this before where people provide videos of his "assists" and it's just him running about a bit. Like nobody else is capable of doing so, and of course the fact we'd actually be playing with someone else in that position instead of him. He was missing for one game against Burnley and his replacement scored 2 out of our 3. 3 more goals and he's matched his whole seasons total. I'm all for giving him credit where it's due, and I have done. I've stood up against people saying he doesn't do anything all last year. But it's pure fantasy to credit him with a third of our goals, when he's never even looked like providing an assist. You can credit the whole team with a hand in goals if you look far back enough in moves or look at others movement. Reality is, the fella rarely manages to kick or pass the ball correctly unless he's keeping it simple. He has his limitations and that's why we've spent the summer trying to improve on him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Col city fan Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 I've been guilty before of looking at Okazaki and thinking 'what is he REALLY offering'? Then I've sobered up, pulled my head out of its arse and looked at the number of games we've won where he's been on the team sheet and all becomes clear. He's a model pro, with bags of experience, for his age is as fit as fook and has chipped in with goals in important games and at important times. A quick look at Slimani tells you he's the more 'natural finisher'. However, whether his impact on the whole team and how we play proves to be as important as Shinji's, time will tell.... Okazaki was a near ever present in a team that won the most competitive division on the planet, ultimately at a canter. You don't get to achieve that without being a footballer playing at a very good level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Foxxed Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 Worth noting our goal against Liverpool came from Shinji pressuring their defender. Good to see him on the score sheet again, twice, hopefully giving him more confidence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lgfualol Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 49 minutes ago, Col city fan said: Then I've sobered up, pulled my head out of its arse I'm not an expert but don't think your head should have an arse of its own. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
worthosoriginals Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 6 hours ago, Manwell Pablo said: Surely no one is actually doing that are they A) He's just scored a brace B) He was ever present in a title winning team so clearly not a problem C) He's not even in the first XI at the moment anyway. Silly season in full swing this morning, nothing like a good defeat to bring out the utterly ludicrous comments. Might have to bring back Manwell Pablo's quotes of the week if this carries on Spot on manwell. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Countryfox Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 7 hours ago, Col city fan said: I find some of the criticism of this fella on here hard to fathom? (Then again. It is FT...). There are far far bigger issues with this squad than to bang on about Shinji not being good enough. What the Hell we would do if Christian Fuchs picks up an injury, for example. And if Huth gets sidelined for any length of time. And DD !! ... he is probably more important than anyone else at the moment ... he's the heartbeat of the team and if he goes missing we will have a big problem. Can't even afford for him to miss a bloody minor cup game ... !!! (Shinji is an underrated and important part of the team by the way ... imo). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crazyleicester Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 When last season ended most of the City fans I spoke to had Okazaki`s position as top of the list as the position we needed to get a new recruit in first. I must admit I agreed. The reality is he did great stuff for us last season with his running, energy and enthusiasm. He wasnt the only one though. He would have been one of six players who ran around like a lunatic but he could do that as he usually was subbed after an hour. The issue was in his position, he had to score goals. The reality is he didnt. Because of the way he played it seems like he found himself always off balance and regardless of how much we love his efforts of last season, we had to move on and get a new player in. Roll on a few months and we have Musa but more importantly Slimani. Slimani has the potential to be Okazaki with goals. Ok he may not dribble as much as Oka but Slimani has the intelligent runs, the team play and most importantly can score all sorts of goals with a speciality of using his head. We have quality by way of Fuchs, Mahrez and Albrighton and when Ulloa plays I always fancy him getting goals primarily with his head because of the aforementioned players. Now we have someone who gets the best of Oka and Ullua but in one player. This isnt about hating Okazaki but its about moving on. We won the league and if we didnt improve we would go backwards. We may have been weakened in central midfield and strengthened our squad but the one position we have improved is in Oka`s position. We need to improve the first team every season if we want to be Challenging for Europe every season and maintain the momentum we have as a club at the moment. BTW, despite his age and lack of goals Id still keep him around but instead of him going mental for 60 mins from the start, I think he will be more effective when the oppos defenders have been running around for 70 mins and then him and Musa come on for the last 15-20. Which defenders will want to have to deal with that??! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Doctor Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 6 hours ago, Finnegan said: Other than his use of hyperbole, which I took to be deliberate, why is that funny, exactly? He was and still is the perfect foil to Vardy. Does a lot of the graft in the 10 spot, links up well, bothers defenders, helps win the ball back, had a role to play in a lot of goals last season. He's unconventional and a little awkward looking but he's also a top level professional, has stacks of caps and goals for his country, has been playing in Europe's top league for years, came here with a good pedigree and has fit in our system brilliantly. I'm not really sure why people treat him frequently as an object of ridicule or as some kind of funny mascot, quite frankly. Given they did the same with Yuki Abe (opinions being either a novelty or shit) you could probably take a good guess... Still don't understand why people moan about his lack of goals - look at his record elsewhere he's clearly a good goalscorer, and isn't in the side to score goals. He's playing the nugent 13/14 role - essentially an extra advanced midfielder to support Vardy, and he clearly does it really well; and crucially for all those who saw how inept we were v hull. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Finnegan Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 I was deliberately avoiding accusing a good 60% of FoxesTalk of being racist. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steflcfc Posted 21 September 2016 Share Posted 21 September 2016 Their are many attributes last season that optimised our success, hard work and the never say die attitude are just 2 that Oki brings to the table. His role in our starting 11 is, I would say rather unorthodox, dropping to attacking mid (when played on the floor his first touch and lay offs are pretty decent) and supporting Vards in harassing and pulling players out of position. Both of which he does very well and without the plaudits he deserves. If we were playing him as an out and out striker like vardy, then his feat in front of goal wouldn't be good enough, but we rarely play him on the shoulder of the last defender so it's hard to judge. Like a few others have said his attitude and workrate like Vardys are infectious and others feed off of this and his role in our starting 11/off the bench shouldn't be underestimated. Out of our strikers I would put oka 3rd in attack behind vardy and Slimini, Ulloa will have limited options this season and Musa is still finding his feet. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.