Why we need midfielders, not forwards.....

[lost_n_spaced]

Dzeko - (18 played ; 7 starts ; 89 minutes per goal)
Aguero - (18 played ; 14 starts ; 152 minutes per goal)
Tevez - (19 played ; 15 starts ; 185 minutes per goal)
Garcia - (10 played , 7 starts ; 384 minutes per goal)
Yaya - (21 played ; 21 starts ; 471 minutes per goal)
Milner - (11 played ; 7 starts ; 309 minutes per goal)
Zaba - (16 played ; 15 starts ; 709 minutes per goal)
Kolarov - (12 played ; 7 starts ; 587 minutes per goal)
Lescott - (12 played ; 8 starts ; 740 minutes per goal)
Mario - (13 played ; 7 starts ; 587 minutes per goal)
Nasri - (13 played ; 12 starts ; 964 minutes per goal)
Barry - (15 played ; 13 starts ; 1174 minutes per goal)
Silva - (18 played ; 16 starts ; 1387 minutes per goal)

The PL's 5 highest scoring forwards :

RVP - (21 played ; 17 starts ; 104 minutes per goal)
Luis Suarez - (20 played ; 20 starts ; 120 minutes per goal)
Demba Ba (20 played ; 19 starts ; 127 minutes per goal)
Michu (20 played ; 20 starts ; 134 minutes per goal)
Defoe (21 played ; 20 starts ; 171 minutes per goal)

The much maligned Little Pea, who most blues would absolutely never ever swap balo for has a strike rate of 1 every 74.5 minutes, btw)

The PL's 5 highest scoring midfielders :

Bale (17 played ; 17 starts ; 165 minutes per goal)
Walcott (16 played ; 9 starts ; 119 minutes per goal)
Fellaini (16 played ; 16 starts ; 180 minutes per goal)
Cazorla (20 matches ; 20 starts ; 252 minutes per goal)
Mata (18 matches ; 15 starts ; 191 minutes per goal)



Our top 3 strikers look to be performing about up to scratch (Mario is highlighted because he clearly isn't), but look at the comparison when it comes to goal chipped in by midfield.......

I've said for sometime that I reckon our problem is midfield (and that i hope that Mancini's rather public focus on our forwards is a bit of smoke & mirrors), but we really do need our current midfielders to start scoring more (or to get ones in who can).......

Although highlighted, Silva is exempt from this as he is clearly a genius (but it would be nice if he scored one or two more, obv).

 

[lost_n_spaced]

The point being, of course (and my reason for sticking it on the transfer forum), that as much as it would be nice to have a Cavani or a Falcao, that is most definitely not where our problems lie (despite Mancini's protestations to the contrary).

Suggestions (potential targets) to solve this problem ?

 

[lost_n_spaced]

Sorry for an actual football related post.

I forgot that in order to solicit thought / debate on this forum I should have either :

1 - Included some unsubstantiated remark from a non-existant unknown mate of mine who is the cousin of the nephew of the fax machine repairman of someone who works for the club,

2 - Have taken the inane attention-grabbing / hit seeking scribing of Goal.com or Calciomercato.it and dressed it up as nudge-nudge-wink-wink ITKness,

3 - Have posted a youtube video of such duality that it is just as likely to 'suggest' that the bathroom tilework needs re-grouting as anything interesting football-wise,

4 - Suggested - as though this makes me some sort of footballing doyen - that the signing Neymar, Cavani, Messi, or a peak-form Maradona might make a difference to our team.

That'll learn me.



















And before the needy spaz's go nuclear, I'm joking........... kind of. :D

 

[Salford_Blue]

We need a wide man (or men).

If we had someone similar to Valencia in Stretford, we would be a far quicker breaking team and in my view, win significantly more games.

 

[blue wang]

The PL's 5 highest scoring midfielders :

Bale (17 played ; 17 starts ; 165 minutes per goal)
Walcott (16 played ; 9 starts ; 119 minutes per goal)
Fellaini (16 played ; 16 starts ; 180 minutes per goal)
Cazorla (20 matches ; 20 starts ; 252 minutes per goal)
Mata (18 matches ; 15 starts ; 191 minutes per goal)


problem with this comparison is bale, walcot and fellani havent been playing as midfielders,

hatricks ie can skewer stats.
doesnt consider dead ball situations and assist

not much to be gained here

 

[lost_n_spaced]

The PL's 5 highest scoring midfielders :

Bale (17 played ; 17 starts ; 165 minutes per goal)
Walcott (16 played ; 9 starts ; 119 minutes per goal)
Fellaini (16 played ; 16 starts ; 180 minutes per goal)
Cazorla (20 matches ; 20 starts ; 252 minutes per goal)
Mata (18 matches ; 15 starts ; 191 minutes per goal)


problem with this comparison is bale, walcot and fellani havent been playing as midfielders,

hatricks ie can skewer stats.
doesnt consider dead ball situations and assist

not much to be gained here

Hat-tricks over the course of a career can skew stats.

We are not 6 games into the season, we're 21 in. Bale, Walcott and Fellaini, whilst I would agree that they are not exactly defensive minded are scoring plenty of goals and do play in a side with at least one main striker (we very rarely play with 2 up top).

My opinion is this : The reason for our midfield not providing goals is the slow pace, lack of width & sometimes desire to walk the ball into the net. we have an awful lot of one-dimensional midfielders & very single one of them (perhaps with the exception of Silva) needs to either contribute more or we should be looking to upgrade.

 

[yerwot?]

we have strikers who can put the ball away, even against 11 men
their job would be easier against 7 men.
to achieve this the ball needs to travel faster from defence to the halfway line, and then on to Silva/Nasri to play in the strikers, all into feet, not just walloped in the air. Most times we take the safe option to retain possession . slow and sideways
a mid who carries the ball at speed, committing defenders would be priceless, Yaya only does it now and again, Gaz has never been rapid, so i agree with the op

 

[greasedupdeafguy]

A midfielder like Fernandinho or Paulinho might solve our the our slow midfield issue.

We need width Walcott could have been an option on a free but it appears he is getting close to a new a deal with Arsenal, maybe Ben Arfa? Bale would be stupidly expensive he would be worth it but I cant see it happening.

Fellaini would be amazing could play in a midfield three with Yaya and a more holding player. Would also give us that long ball option and would get goals from midfield.

Selling Dzeko and Balo and using the funds for Falcao also make sense, he would be our Van Persie we simply cant miss out on him especially to Chelsea as the only thing holding them back is a world class striker.

 

[brass neck]

I think we have the best squad in the prem options wise, with the noticeable exeption of absolute, killer pace comming from midfield! I would go for walcott because we could get him, he is fast, he can still be molded into a good player, he is prem proven and he potentialy could be a top striker!

 

[NQCitizen]

So the player with easily our best scoring record is our joint least-started. That doesn't seem too wise. I always suspect, as well as he plays, Tevez is largely ineffective and this just goes to prove that.

 

[greasedupdeafguy]

So the player with easily our best scoring record is our joint least-started. That doesn't seem too wise. I always suspect, as well as he plays, Tevez is largely ineffective and this just goes to prove that.

Did you watch the derby?

 

[Any1aBlue]

I can't be bothered to trawl through that lot as I've a life to live - but, based on the title of the thread only - its Central defenders we need more than anything and has been for 18 months!<br /><br />-- Thu Jan 10, 2013 7:07 pm --<br /><br />

So the player with easily our best scoring record is our joint least-started. That doesn't seem too wise. I always suspect, as well as he plays, Tevez is largely ineffective and this just goes to prove that.

Did you watch the derby?

I did - and he was..............

 

[BoyBlue_1985]

I can't be bothered to trawl through that lot as I've a life to live - but, based on the title of the thread only - its Central defenders we need more than anything and has been for 18 months!

-- Thu Jan 10, 2013 7:07 pm --

So the player with easily our best scoring record is our joint least-started. That doesn't seem too wise. I always suspect, as well as he plays, Tevez is largely ineffective and this just goes to prove that.

Did you watch the derby?

I did - and he was..............

I know individualism is great but you seriously are a voice of one with your new central defender shit

 

[pee dubya]

So the player with easily our best scoring record is our joint least-started. That doesn't seem too wise. I always suspect, as well as he plays, Tevez is largely ineffective and this just goes to prove that.

Depends whether you quantify effectiveness solely in terms of goals scored. For example Tevez had 10 assists, Dzeko has 3. Also, Tevez is almost always the deepest of all our forwards, in fact often he's playing more like an attacking midfielder (where i think he's at his best).

 

[Tevez City]

Your thread deserve the Thread of The Month Award.

 

[NQCitizen]

So the player with easily our best scoring record is our joint least-started. That doesn't seem too wise. I always suspect, as well as he plays, Tevez is largely ineffective and this just goes to prove that.

Did you watch the derby?

Yeah I was there. I wouldn't want to base all my opinions on that one game though.

 

[NQCitizen]

So the player with easily our best scoring record is our joint least-started. That doesn't seem too wise. I always suspect, as well as he plays, Tevez is largely ineffective and this just goes to prove that.

Depends whether you quantify effectiveness solely in terms of goals scored. For example Tevez had 10 assists, Dzeko has 3. Also, Tevez is almost always the deepest of all our forwards, in fact often he's playing more like an attacking midfielder (where i think he's at his best).

I think that's the issue. With Tevez the team is happy to let him have the ball and pass and battle around the box but playing Dzeko actually encourages more incisive play because of his different attributes. Both great players though.

 

[Any1aBlue]

I can't be bothered to trawl through that lot as I've a life to live - but, based on the title of the thread only - its Central defenders we need more than anything and has been for 18 months!

-- Thu Jan 10, 2013 7:07 pm --

Did you watch the derby?

I did - and he was..............

I know individualism is great but you seriously are a voice of one with your new central defender shit

Thanks - as usual, as long as I see you disagree with me and keep talking pants, then Im encouraged to know that im right.

And the evidence suggests just that too;
'central defender' shit - i think you'll find even Mancini agrees with me - that's why hes been trying, belatedly, to buy one and why our defence looks so vulnerable..........................and why,therefore I said we should be getting one in 18 months agao - its called planning. Same goes for having someone in place for Yaya (dembele or fellani) and therefore why I said our transfer policy last summer was abysmal. That wasted 50m (and it was totally blown on pap) could have bought us at least one world class performer and probably two. Instead we've just weakened our team and now suffering for buying yet more average players on astronomical wages.

It aint rocket science - but it does help to know a little about the game and not stick your head in the sand and follow the crowd, sheep like as you do................

 

[andrewmswift]

I agree, but we don't necessarily need more goals from our midfielders, but we do need a hell of a lot more creativity

 

[Thenumber1blue]

Quite simply true because the game is normally won and lost in the midfield,unless of course your playing Stoke.