He scored 30 goals in 3 seasons for MK Dons as they bounced around Leagues 1 and 2, but now Sam Baldock has moved to West Ham. The striker will will need to double his scoring figures if he is to win over the supporters and become a Hammers hero, but the question is, is he ready to score 20 goals a season, in a league he has never played in before?
Baldock was signed to be the replacement for Carlton Cole, who it seemed, would be moving on in the summer. However, since Cole’s proposed move to Stoke and then any other team in the world broke down, Baldock has found himself fighting for a place in the team and fighting directly with Cole for the first place in the strikers’ pecking order.
Baldock’s stats are impressive, 5 goals in 7 games, a goal every 1.4 games is not to be sniffed at. It’s even slightly better than Cole, who has 5 goals but played a game more, putting him a goal every 1.6 games. But the pair are both still 7 behind Southampton’s Rickie Lambert, who sits top on 12 goals.
Baldock has shown he is no stranger to finding the back of the net wherever he has played in his career, but this is Baldock’s first shot at the Championship and making the step up can be something that takes time. Time, however, is not on Baldock’s side, West Ham are going well in the Championship and look set to make the return to the Premier League, meaning Baldock will have to make a bigger and more important step up.
Baldock has started promisingly, and I feel that he can step up and score more goals to take West Ham back to the Premier League. However, this shouldn’t be turned into a direct fight between Cole and Baldock to be the number one striker; it should be the two striking up a partnership (pardon the pun) to fire the club to glory. Both of them have the ability to score 20 plus goals and if they did, West Ham will win the league, easily.
While I agree with the article’s principle – that Baldock will come good – I don’t agree with the statement that he was signed as a replacement for Cole. They are two completely different players and he was signed to be a foil for players like Cole, Carew and Piquionne – a smaller, quicker player to run on to flick ons etc. If anything, Carew was signed as a possible replacement for Cole.
As I say, I agree with the principle of the article – Baldock is a quality finisher who will get goals in any league, I think.
Hi MK Dons stats aren’t as bad as you make them sound
68 starts, 33 goals
Isn’t Lambert Southampton’s penalty taker ? That makes a difference!
Especially given the amount of pens they have had recently, have we even had any yet this season? 1 maybe at the start of the season?
Lamberts may have 12goals but hes Southampton penalty taker (must be at least four this season?) hes also scored two hatricks,and has only just broken hes goal drought after 5 games without scoring!!!
Lambert needs a Butler too.
The point about Carlton Cole is that it was presumed he was leaving in the summer, his move to Stoke broke down moments before the end of the transfer window meaning he stayed at West Ham.
I thought his MK Dons stats were pretty good, so didn’t mean to make them come across badly.
Lambert has scored 5 penalties, but goals are goals.
please give him a go. anybody but cole