No strikers

[VLC86]

46 minutes ago, wardyfox86 said:

I flirted this idea in the JJ thread and got roundly shot down. It got called the most unhinged opinion ever seen on this forum, I don't think people are for it. 

 

 

That’s about made me choke.

 

Its amazing what a season of Ayew up front does to an opinion.

[fazzyfox]

I’d agree that trying Mavididi or Decordova-Reid up there would likely fare better than what we get now - Daka can’t handle the physicality of this league and Ayew can’t handle the pace (he just brings everything down to his tempo). Either of the false 9’s would have more joy running on to things and stretching defences than the current choices do.

[jayfox26]

The attack/goals is the least of our concerns when we are conceding 2+ goals every game. 

[turtmcfly]

28 minutes ago, fazzyfox said:

I’d agree that trying Mavididi or Decordova-Reid up there would likely fare better than what we get now - Daka can’t handle the physicality of this league and Ayew can’t handle the pace (he just brings everything down to his tempo). Either of the false 9’s would have more joy running on to things and stretching defences than the current choices do.

 

The most unhinged opinion ever seen on this forum

 

[Lambert09]

1 hour ago, BrilliantFox said:

Just play Mavididi as Striker

Monga as Left Wing

Fatawu as Right Wing

Mavidid has zero composure. You would be begging for daka after 10 minutes. 

[turtmcfly]

1 hour ago, wardyfox86 said:

I flirted this idea in the JJ thread and got roundly shot down. It got called the most unhinged opinion ever seen on this forum, I don't think people are for it. 

 

 

 

This idea: "get one of our defenders up there instead to just bustle around, create space, win nod downs and set up our midfielders and wingers"

 

Your idea: "play Jordan James up top to shoehorn him in"

 

 

[MPH]

2 hours ago, Tuna said:

Try Aribo there can't be any worse at least he has a bit of physical presence.

 

did you see the way he just stopped and stared at the ball after his shot? 
 

 

a striker he is not.

[wardyfox86]

3 hours ago, turtmcfly said:

 

This idea: "get one of our defenders up there instead to just bustle around, create space, win nod downs and set up our midfielders and wingers"

 

Your idea: "play Jordan James up top to shoehorn him in"

 

 

Are they wildly different ideas? This thread is generally discussing the idea of playing anybody else but Daka or Ayew upfront or in a false 9. I still maintain that a midfield and attack of:

 

Skipp, Winks, Mavididi, Fatawu, JJ and Mukasa

 

Would be better than persisting with a striker that just gets the nod because "he plays there" 

[Greg2607]

I'm surprised Hutchinson hasn't at least made the bench to be fair. 

[Chrysalis]

We need to go back to having 3-4 first team strikers in the squad.

 

But also to refuse an offer for him when its clear he wasnt working last summer, was a sackable offence.

[nnfox]

I do miss the days of the likes of Steve Walsh and Matty Elliott being strikers.  Don't see enough of it now.

[Stadt]

Good way to score even fewer goals. We’ve essentially been strikerless every time we’ve played Ayew. Daka is horribly flawed but he occupies the opposition defence in a way only a striker can.

 

30 minutes of Aribo, BDCR, Mavididi or whoever would be enough evidence. We have about dozen games to potentially save the club and we can’t piss about experimenting with these no marks out of position 

[whoareyaaa]

41 minutes ago, nnfox said:

I do miss the days of the likes of Steve Walsh and Matty Elliott being strikers.  Don't see enough of it now.

That was in the last 10 miutes of a game

[beepee1984]

I vote for putting Luke Thomas up front!

We never put the ball in the box anyway so whoever is up there is not important

Winks and the centre backs passing the going nowhere triangle is the way forward

However why have we signed Richards, did we just miss having a loan player for no reason and Édouard was no longer available

[MrsJohnMurphy]

58 minutes ago, whoareyaaa said:

That was in the last 10 miutes of a game

Walsh wasn't

[squidsworth]

[Trav Le Bleu]

1 hour ago, MrsJohnMurphy said:

Walsh wasn't

Neither was Elliott for some games. Both have started games as forwards, though moreso Walsh.

[ceebeefox]

You’d think with Daka’s pace, the easiest thing in the world to do would be to quickly come off his man 4 yards or so to receive the ball and link play. But once again at Stoke he was anonymous, no link up, no running in behind, no headers, no chances got on the end of.

[Wasyls Pec Deck]

9 hours ago, Trav Le Bleu said:

Having posted just now in the Daka thread about the ineffectiveness of our strikers, but getting plenty of goals from elsewhere, why don't we try playing with no strikers. Maybe get one of our defenders up there instead to just bustle around, create space, win nod downs and set up our midfielders and wingers.

 

(Prepares to be shot down in flames)

The only issue is that I don’t think we have any defenders to spare at the moment? 🤣 

[MaidstoneFox]

9 hours ago, Joe90 said:

Well it worked with Spain 2012, obviously Spain had a SLIGHTLY better midfield then ours like!😜

I think Fabregas operated as the false 9 in 2012. He dragged the centre-backs all over the place and created space to run into. Who is our closest player to Fabregas?

[Chrysalis]

8 hours ago, fazzyfox said:

I’d agree that trying Mavididi or Decordova-Reid up there would likely fare better than what we get now - Daka can’t handle the physicality of this league and Ayew can’t handle the pace (he just brings everything down to his tempo). Either of the false 9’s would have more joy running on to things and stretching defences than the current choices do.

The best managers have the belief to drop players in preferred position and try something new if it leads to better results.  But too many people think it has to be circle pegs in circle holes.

[Dan]

Another window passed where they failed to address any of the main issues in the team.

 

They couldn't be any worse if they tried to be.

[Foxmeister]

I’d say Ricky P is as good a finisher as we’ve got while JJ is out. He can’t score less than none.

[AyewJoking]

On 22/02/2026 at 13:27, Muzzy_no7 said:

As bad as he is Daka is our best option

make him wear a traffic cone on his head and tell him to run up and down in zig zags all game, will confuse the opposition

[murphy]

19 hours ago, MaidstoneFox said:

I think Fabregas operated as the false 9 in 2012. He dragged the centre-backs all over the place and created space to run into. Who is our closest player to Fabregas?

Fatawu. 

 

We're talking alphabetically right?