So at the moment, we have four main strikers – Sam Baldock, Carlton Cole, Nicky Maynard and Ricardo Vaz Te. That’s six different strike partnership combinations… I think. I had to write them all out to work that out. But is that a good or a bad thing? I’ve put together some pros and cons of our large strike force.
Pros:
- If we have any injuries, we definitely have more than enough strikers to deal with the problem! I feel like some teams rely too much on one key strike force, and if they get injured or banned, then the team is adrift. At least we have enough cover, even if we have two strikers out.
- If a partnership isn’t gelling, Sam Allardyce has ample opportunity to find one that does. Duos can be tested out on the training pitch and can be put forward confidently come match day.
- Increased competition for places – This can only be a good thing, as no one can be complacent in thinking their place in the team is guaranteed. Hopefully it’ll mean the strikers work even harder to get on the pitch come Saturday. And Tuesday; there seem to be a lot of Tuesday matches lately!
Cons:
- If there is a partnership that’s going well, two of our strikers aren’t going to get much match time. That can’t be good for their confidence, especially if it’s Baldock or Cole who now could have two newbies starting ahead of them. Even worse would be if none of the partnerships worked…
- Allardyce seems to enjoy playing a lone striker, so having more forwards means that even more of them will be warming up the bench. Which could in turn mean that we don’t have a keeper in the subs, but we all know how well Lansbury did so may not be so much of a bad knock-on effect!
- The wage bill! Did we actually need to buy both Maynard and Vaz Te in the transfer window? Both have done well since signing for the Hammers but what with Piquionne and Carew still on our books, David Gold and David Sullivan may have to shell out a bit more in wages then they’d like. But it will all be worth it if we get promotion out of it.
What do you think – is our plethora of strikers a good or bad thing? Wouldn’t it be fun to play them all at once? No? Well who would you pair up then? Tweet me at @alwaysintune to let me know.
