Are we clearly suffering from a lack of striker this season? Have midtable sides figured us out?

[herrock]

We are scoring plenty of goals, and if Sterling had put that chance away we probably wouldn't be asking the question today, but the amount of times a ball has been played across the box with nobody anticipating it, happens too often.
Dzeko would have scored loads in this team.

 

[franksinatra]

It's likely been said but we're not really suffering from the lack of a striker. However of course there's never any harm having a player who can do it in the squad; variety is king.

Signing a striker wouldn't magically improve us though, in the same way signing a good quality conventional left back wouldn't either. Again, it gives us more options (which is good), but for every little way we'd improve we'd probab;y get equally weaker by some other metric.


If we signed Haaland we likely would get better (after he settled), but it's not because he's a striker, it's because he's got the makings of an absolutely incredible footballer. That's really the only way this time could improve, with individual quality as opposed to specific positional signings. And when you look at our team, there's not too much room for improvement on an individual scale.

That is pretty much the crux of the situation.

Blank statements like if we had a striker to convert these chances do not take into consideration we are less likely to create as many chances by playing one less technically gifted midfielder, be poorer in ball retention and consequently give, potentially, the opposition more opportunities.

Now if we got a really top top striker who could plunder 30/40 goals a season the other factors may be worth sacrificing to a certain extent. However if that top class striker does not become available, I think Pep would prefer the control and stability this side offers.

It is telling that we went for Kane in the summer. He is arguably the best at dropping deep into central areas, linking play and with the capacity to play cross field passes to runners such as Sterling/Foden. I think in an ideal world that would be the blue print for a striker, less so a striker which plays on the shoulder etc as our rivals rately provide the space behind for us to exploit this.

 

[TFC]

But what if this clinical striker didn't press as well from the front as Bernardo and Kevin do? Would we have been able to control games and kill them off like we have done so regularly this season? Do you think Kane would have covered the yards that Bernardo has? Do you think he would have been able to cover the yards Bernardo has while still scoring the number of goals required to justify the £150m that Spurs were asking for? It's easy to invent a hypothetical scenario and then say it would have been inevitable in a parallel universe, but you have absolutely no idea.

And outside of Kane, who else could we have signed to play up front? Haaland was a no-go last summer and we're in for him this coming summer anyway. Ings was a suggestion - I see he has a grand total of 4 goals this season. Ronaldo? I think we all know that would have been a disaster, looking at where it's got United. Vlahovic? More than possible, but he's very much a target man who doesn't do the same job that Pep wants his false #9s to be doing. All of a sudden, you're running out of options for this mythical super-striker who would have scored 20 goals already.

Also, who wants the league dead and buried in January? That would be awfully, awfully dull. I like going to City games with a bit of jeopardy - that way, wins feel more special. You can't really have football without drama and stakes, otherwise nobody would bother turning up. And when has the league ever been dead and buried in January, for that matter? Even in our 100 points year we got slapped silly by Liverpool around this point in the season. We're in a cracking position with a system that works. It ain't broke so don't fix it.

What if my auntie had bollocks ;)

 

[trevorriley]

the right striker can not be bought ? its always a gamble even with the best in the world you just never know
pep knows his onions and we trust him to deliver the goods and who am i to disagree. but after sterling missing that shocker at the weekend. i got a flash back to the champions league final last season and thought would you put your house on him scoring one on one to win the champions league ??

i think that is the reason why so many of us want a kane or haaland striker to kill the game off in pressure moments .
who would you trust in the city squad in a false 9 to win us the big game. they all have their moments of madness in front of goal and you never know until its to late to fix

i agree also, there are times you see the miss and think ffs if we had a striker...

sterling is actually one of the last players id like to see with a one on one under pressure.

 

[ancoats]

i agree also, there are times you see the miss and think ffs if we had a striker...

sterling is actually one of the last players id like to see with a one on one under pressure.

yep the old fashion winger running from deep and once he gets going hard to stop.
we all should remember sterling is not a natural striker and this is where the pressure comes from being asked to do a job he is not 100% comfy with

 

[tommy116]

City are already 8 points clear with just half the season gone. Nobody has figured City out; all they do is park the bus, hope City have an off day and try to catch us on the break.

 

[salfordbluetrue]

It is a balance, not having a striker means you can not play one, the opposition play deep and try to catch us on the break, the teams with better strikers manage it the teams with worse strikers do not, having a striker on the pitch means less possession and less chances but more taken, so in short we need a big striker just not all the time.

 

[SatOnTheWall]

Clearly suffering? No.

Could do with a striker? Yes. It would be a nice Plan B for those moments when a Plan B might be needed.

 

[yankblue]

I'm not sure suffering is the right word, but I do think an out an out striker that fits Pep's style could take this team to another level.

 

[Kinkys Left Foot]

If anyone thinks conceding 70% posession, scoring from your one and only counter attack shot on target and defending with a low block for 90 minutes and hanging on for grim death in the last 20 minutes hoping we miss the chance after chance we create is "figuring us out", then yes we've been well and truly sussed.