Oakley or Spearing

[marbelladave]

By creative, I mean playmaker. Note, he also set up the first goal against QPR. He picked out Howard, who nodded the ball down for King to score easily. So that is two assists in one game. It is hard to play in the front man in a 4-5-1. However, I think that he has played in Dyer numerous times this season.

He certainly has his moments but I do not think he does it often enough or consistently enough, just an opinion.

[marbelladave]

The typical English response seems to be playing players in the positions they are used to rather than putting a winger in as target man and striker in the midfield, seems fairly sensible to me. Obviously we could try moving players around but at this stage in the season it might be better to go with tried and tested rather than experimenting, we played OK on Monday (helped by a poor QPR performance) and I think we'll be OK against a team that is hardly in great form tomorrow.

Riiiight.

Kermogant in midfield, Oakley or Gallagher on the right wing, Gallagher on the left, Waghorn leading the line, not even mentioning Morrison, Solano and McGivern. We're not exactly strangers when it comes to playing players not in their usual positions.

I said in a previous post that it was probably not sensible to make far reaching changes at this stage and my team posted above changes just one player, Dyer, from the QPR game.

N'Guessan has played as a target man before this season, though usually deployed in wide positions. He is quite sharp in the box and can score goals. Given that the current option is Howard, I thought it a possibility worth discussing.

[okie fox]

Riiiight.

Kermogant in midfield, Oakley or Gallagher on the right wing, Gallagher on the left, Waghorn leading the line, not even mentioning Morrison, Solano and McGivern. We're not exactly strangers when it comes to playing players not in their usual positions.

I said in a previous post that it was probably not sensible to make far reaching changes at this stage and my team posted above changes just one player, Dyer, from the QPR game.

N'Guessan has played as a target man before this season, though usually deployed in wide positions. He is quite sharp in the box and can score goals. Given that the current option is Howard, I thought it a possibility worth discussing.

I would like to see less of Oakley and more of N'Guessan. He had a great game against Blackpool, but apparently NP thinks he is too inconsistent to start or even be brought on as a sub regularly. Apart from Dyer and to a lesser extent Waghorn, the team has little pace and other teams are able to play high up the pitch against us. King, Wellens, Oakley, Gallagher, Howard, Kermogant, and the back 4 are not going to outpace their defence. N'Guessan would inject more pace and has scored quite a few goals in the time he has been on the pitch. However, he often disappoints and he may not track back a lot.

[marbelladave]

I would like to see less of Oakley and more of N'Guessan. He had a great game against Blackpool, but apparently NP thinks he is too inconsistent to start or even be brought on as a sub regularly. Apart from Dyer and to a lesser extent Waghorn, the team has little pace and other teams are able to play high up the pitch against us. King, Wellens, Oakley, Gallagher, Howard, Kermogant, and the back 4 are not going to outpace their defence. N'Guessan would inject more pace and has scored quite a few goals in the time he has been on the pitch. However, he often disappoints and he may not track back a lot.

All true, especially the highlighted bit. In my view this is because he is usually deployed in wide positions and Pearson requires his wide players to take on substantial defensive duties, even when supposedly playing 4-3-3. He is a far better player when he gets well forward,

N'Guessan is one of the few players we have who poses a genuine threat inside the box, he is big, strong, quick, has a good first touch and can score goals.

I see him more as an alternative to Howard than to Oakley but apparently he is a winger, so we will probably never know.

[Mickey O'Neil]

Spearing.

[Guest ttfn]

All true, especially the highlighted bit. In my view this is because he is usually deployed in wide positions and Pearson requires his wide players to take on substantial defensive duties, even when supposedly playing 4-3-3. He is a far better player when he gets well forward,

N'Guessan is one of the few players we have who poses a genuine threat inside the box, he is big, strong, quick, has a good first touch and can score goals.

I see him more as an alternative to Howard than to Oakley but apparently he is a winger, so we will probably never know.

I think that's probably stretching the point. He's pretty cumbersome.

[Legend_in_blue]

Technically, Paul Gallagher is the best player in the squad. I think he's quality. Along with Waghorn, both are Premiership quality imo. Put Hobbs into the mix and you have there what is commonly known as a pretty decent 'spine'.

Oakley is past it. He'll hop it at the end of the season.

Spearing will offer workrate, but from what I've seen of him, can't offer on the same level as Gallagher.

NP has erred on the side of caution through much of this season and as much as I'd love to see Gallagher behind a front two, it won't happen. Not now.

We'll get ourselves there with the tried and trusted workmanlike performance.

Whether this will see us through a play-off challenge, remains to be seen.

[marbelladave]

I think that's probably stretching the point. He's pretty cumbersome.

For a winger you might well be right, as a center forward he is both more mobile and has better control than the current incumbent...

Technically, Paul Gallagher is the best player in the squad. I think he's quality. Along with Waghorn, both are Premiership quality imo. Put Hobbs into the mix and you have there what is commonly known as a pretty decent 'spine'.

Oakley is past it. He'll hop it at the end of the season.

Spearing will offer workrate, but from what I've seen of him, can't offer on the same level as Gallagher.

NP has erred on the side of caution through much of this season and as much as I'd love to see Gallagher behind a front two, it won't happen. Not now.

We'll get ourselves there with the tried and trusted workmanlike performance.

Whether this will see us through a play-off challenge, remains to be seen.

Spot on.

Personally I would add Andy King to the mix, but I am aware others think differently.

Getting Gallagher more involved has been the subject of many of my posts lately, but as you say we are unlikely to change much at this stage of the campaign.

[Fatbloke]

You obviously didn't go Cardiff away then. Spearing was one of our better players.

I did go to Cardff, I thought he was bluddy awful, never got into the game at all, today has only served to strengthen my opinion he is painfully slow, gives the ball away more than Browny and brings nothing to the team at all, send him and Vaughan back a s a p !