We Need Two Full Backs

[JohnnyLaw]

We know he can play 5 games and score 3 goals with 1 assist.

So if he has 5 games and gets 1 goal and 0 assists, you'd be stupid not to persist and continue to play him as a winger because hes almost been as productive as Mbeumo at 21 years old. He has several years to show he cant do it.

But it’s such a small sample size there’s very little you can draw from it.

You’re also doing him favours adding in the Newcastle game from a month earlier where he played on the right whilst ignoring the games against Wolves and Leeds where he was also more advanced.

Also the fact is that he’s been playing basically as a left winger under Amorim for almost a year and failed to impress, racking up only 3 assists and no goals from 30 or so games up to that point.

 

[Ekeke]

But it’s such a small sample size there’s very little you can draw from it.

You’re also doing him favours adding in the Newcastle game from a month earlier where he played on the right whilst ignoring the games against Wolves and Leeds where he was also more advanced.

Also the fact is that he’s been playing basically as a left winger under Amorim for almost a year and failed to impress, racking up only 3 assists and no goals from 30 or so games up to that point.

Well no he wasnt playing as a winger, he was "basically" playing as a leftback. The change in end product since playing as a winger should tell you that

Yeah its 8 games not 5 my bad, that he has 1 goal less than Mbeumo in his last 8. Amad has 0 goals and 0 assists in his last 5...

 

[goldenboy]

Well no he wasnt playing as a winger, he was "basically" playing as a leftback. The change in end product since playing as a winger should tell you that

He was basically having to man the entire left-flank on his own - both in defence and attack.

As the LWB he generally looked better at the defensive side of the role though, than the attacking side - which suggests one shouldn't rule him out being a good LB.

The other thing - basically all the players looked worse under Amorim than under Carrick, so Dorgu could also still easily look better under Carrick at LB than he did under Amorim as LWB. His performances at LW under Carrick could as much be just a function of the team being more confident under Carrick than a function of his change in position.

 

[Ekeke]

He was basically having to man the entire left-flank on his own - both in defence and attack.

As the LWB he generally looked better at the defensive side of the role though, than the attacking side - which suggests one shouldn't rule him out being a good LB.

The other thing - basically all the players looked worse under Amorim than under Carrick, so Dorgu could also still easily look better under Carrick at LB than he did under Amorim as LWB. His performances at LW under Carrick could as much be just a function of the team being more confident under Carrick than a function of his change in position.

I'm sure he could play leftback. But why would you want someone who is currently your 2nd most in form "winger" to play leftback? Its such a reduced importance and value.

 

[Lash]

That’s my point. He was struggling as a WB in Amorim’s system and was written off as a player because of it. Then he gets an opportunity as a winger in a different system and suddenly confounds expectations. And yet we have people once again writing him off, this time as a LB, despite us not having seen him play that position yet in this new system.

My only point is that I don’t think we should pigeon hole him or write him off. I think if he continues to develop he has the potential to be useful for us in a variety of positions, including wing and including FB.

That's not what happened though. He played as a 10/winger in Amorim's teams too at the end. You add the fact at Lecce he was best at RW. The body of work of him in a advanced role is just far more positive than anywhere else on the pitch. But in this system we haven't played an attacking FB, so it doesn't really make any sense. We've also not seen him play up front or CB, I'm not sure how that's an argument to play him there.

It's not pigeon holing him to play him in the position he has played best for us in. Players get better by regularly playing in a position, especially young ones. It's pigeon holing him to put him as a LB, considering he's never played there for us.

No one's writing him off at LB, but it doesn't make any sense to play him LB. In the same way people didn't like Amad playing wingback, I'm not sure why it's fine to play Dorgu LB. Dorgu has more goals and assists than Amad this season.

 

[Lash]

He was basically having to man the entire left-flank on his own - both in defence and attack.

As the LWB he generally looked better at the defensive side of the role though, than the attacking side - which suggests one shouldn't rule him out being a good LB.

The other thing - basically all the players looked worse under Amorim than under Carrick, so Dorgu could also still easily look better under Carrick at LB than he did under Amorim as LWB. His performances at LW under Carrick could as much be just a function of the team being more confident under Carrick than a function of his change in position.

Apart from under Amorim and at Lecce he played well as a winger. I don't think he did actually did look better at the defensive side of things, no one really praised him for his defence. He was getting in attacking positions and not doing well, but as you mention he covered the whole flank. That's just being physical, not being a good defender.

 

[Zumbi]

I'm sure he could play leftback. But why would you want someone who is currently your 2nd most in form "winger" to play leftback? Its such a reduced importance and value.

Disagree - quality FBs are an incredibly important part of the modern game, whether via adding extra width or attacking impetus in the final third or by dropping in to help CM or as a third CB.

Are you really asking what the benefits are of a player being able to play either wing or FB?

Squad players who are versatile and can play different roles in the team - whether it’s due to availability of other players or a particular tactical needs a specific opponent - are a huge asset. Indeed, Dorgu’s versatility and ability to play different positions was one of the main strengths highlighted by INEOS when we bought him. Why do we have to pigeon hole him into one position now when we have such a limited sample size of him playing in a four at the back system here?

 

[Zumbi]

That's not what happened though. He played as a 10/winger in Amorim's teams too at the end. You add the fact at Lecce he was best at RW. The body of work of him in a advanced role is just far more positive than anywhere else on the pitch. But in this system we haven't played an attacking FB, so it doesn't really make any sense. We've also not seen him play up front or CB, I'm not sure how that's an argument to play him there.

It's not pigeon holing him to play him in the position he has played best for us in. Players get better by regularly playing in a position, especially young ones. It's pigeon holing him to put him as a LB, considering he's never played there for us.

No one's writing him off at LB, but it doesn't make any sense to play him LB. In the same way people didn't like Amad playing wingback, I'm not sure why it's fine to play Dorgu LB. Dorgu has more goals and assists than Amad this season.

But against teams who sit back we could. EG sometimes Shaw drops in as a third CB and Dalot pushes up. In games where we expect more of the ball we could easily have a more attacking LB pushing up with the RB able to drop in as needed. Having such versatility with personnel and tactics is a good thing - all it takes is an injury to Shaw and suddenly we’re looking short at LB.

Saying why don’t we try him at CM or CF or just silly. Dorgu has a history of being able to play in various positions on either flank, and it’s those positions we’re discussing.

And no, being open to Dorgu playing both wing and FB in the future is not pigeon holeing him. Because I haven’t and am not arguing that we should make him a LB. I’m simply saying we shouldn’t rule it out - he may well have utility there in the future, and pigeon holeing him to only wing doesn’t make sense.

 

[Trigestis]

We know he can play 5 games and score 3 goals with 1 assist.

So if he has 5 games and gets 1 goal and 0 assists, you'd be stupid not to persist and continue to play him as a winger because hes almost been as productive as Mbeumo at 21 years old. He has several years to show he cant do it.

We also know that a player like Elanga can score 11 goals and have 20 assists in 2 PL seasons, it doesn't mean we were wrong to sell him or that we should buy him back. Those are incredibly small samples to even make a case that Dorgu should be our LW going forward. That's begging for mediocrity. He can play there now until the summer but surely you don't think "We don't need a LW, because it's already sorted with Dorgu". He can barely take players on, and that's okay, but not as a LW.

The narrative hasn't changed, he was playing wing back and wasn't offering us enough in attack. Maybe the odd decent performance. He since has played as a winger under Amorim and Carrick and has had his best performances for us.

There's simply no evidence he's going to be a good left back, mainly as he's not played there. The logic were being fed is he's played well as a winger, so he'd be a good attacking left back, because he's not good enough to be a top winger. Perhaps if we just continue play him in the position we've seen him perform best in, that's far less of a knee-jerk than deciding he's not good enough for the wing and should be a left back. Perhaps we could practice that virtue.

He was playing on the flank by himself with little support. You're saying this as if it's just because he switched position and that it has nothing to do with him getting confidence or adapting to the pace of the league. He hasn't even been tried as a fullback recently so how can you know he wouldn't be good there?

He was primarily a LB in Lecce, so how has he not played there? There is absolutely a lot of evidence he could be a good left back because he has the defensive ability, the work rate and the offensive output for a LB, but not as a LW (long term, yes, I know about his couple goals as a winger).

 

[Ekeke]

We also know that a player like Elanga can score 11 goals and have 20 assists in 2 PL seasons, it doesn't mean we were wrong to sell him or that we should buy him back. Those are incredibly small samples to even make a case that Dorgu should be our LW going forward. That's begging for mediocrity. He can play there now until the summer but surely you don't think "We don't need a LW, because it's already sorted with Dorgu". He can barely take players on, and that's okay, but not as a LW.


He was playing on the flank by himself with little support. You're saying this as if it's just because he switched position and that it has nothing to do with him getting confidence or adapting to the pace of the league. He hasn't even been tried as a fullback recently so how can you know he wouldn't be good there?

He was primarily a LB in Lecce, so how has he not played there? There is absolutely a lot of evidence he could be a good left back because he has the defensive ability, the work rate and the offensive output for a LB, but not as a LW (long term, yes, I know about his couple goals as a winger).

Nonsense. Elanga was sold because he went a long stretch without productivity, the exact opposite of what Dorgu is doing now. If Dorgu does the same yes he will have to fall back on playing leftback or might not make it here. Right now hes showing why he deserves to start every week. I get that some people dont like him and are bemused that hes doing so well. Get over it

 

[JohnnyLaw]

Well no he wasnt playing as a winger, he was "basically" playing as a leftback. The change in end product since playing as a winger should tell you that

Yeah its 8 games not 5 my bad, that he has 1 goal less than Mbeumo in his last 8. Amad has 0 goals and 0 assists in his last 5...

He obviously had more license to get forward than your average left back, playing as the LM in Amorims system.
The role he played against Arsenal and City were closer to the LM role he played under Amorim than to an attacking LW anyway.

Mbeumo has clearly showed that he can sustain the kind of productivity he’s showing, even with Amad not scoring or assisting in his last fivw I don’t think you’ll find many on here that would advocate for Dorgu to take his place.

Then you also have Cunha and Sesko..

 

[Trigestis]

Nonsense. Elanga was sold because he went a long stretch without productivity, the exact opposite of what Dorgu is doing now. If Dorgu does the same yes he will have to fall back on playing leftback or might not make it here. Right now hes showing why he deserves to start every week. I get that some people dont like him and are bemused that hes doing so well. Get over it

Elanga was sold because he was never good enough.

I love Dorgu. I've been raving about him since he joined and defended him in his thread. There was a very short period where everything he did was trash and it was hard to see much positive and think I may even have wanted him sold right after a poor game, but generally I've been very hyped about him. That being said, he is never going to be an elite winger, that much is obvious. Do you genuinely believe he is going to maintain that productivity and score 15-20 goals a season like Mbeumo because he scored in his last two games? He's in good form, he's not going to be our LW. There is just so much attacking wise he lacks for him to be an elite winger or inside forward, that it doesn't make sense to play him there after this season is over.

 

[Ekeke]

Elanga was sold because he was never good enough.

I love Dorgu. I've been raving about him since he joined and defended him in his thread. There was a very short period where everything he did was trash and it was hard to see much positive and think I may even have wanted him sold right after a poor game, but generally I've been very hyped about him. That being said, he is never going to be an elite winger, that much is obvious. Do you genuinely believe he is going to maintain that productivity and score 15-20 goals a season like Mbeumo because he scored in his last two games? He's in good form, he's not going to be our LW. There is just so much attacking wise he lacks for him to be an elite winger or inside forward, that it doesn't make sense to play him there after this season is over.

I'll believe it till I see its not going to happen. Its called changing your opinion based on evidence

 

[Ekeke]

He obviously had more license to get forward than your average left back, playing as the LM in Amorims system.
The role he played against Arsenal and City were closer to the LM role he played under Amorim than to an attacking LW anyway.

Mbeumo has clearly showed that he can sustain the kind of productivity he’s showing, even with Amad not scoring or assisting in his last fivw I don’t think you’ll find many on here that would advocate for Dorgu to take his place.

Then you also have Cunha and Sesko..

Sesko is a different position, but Dorgu was starting over Cunha and for good reason and showed why.

 

[JohnnyLaw]

Sesko is a different position, but Dorgu was starting over Cunha and for good reason and showed why.

Yes, because he’s a better defender and we were expected to do a lot of defending.

 

[Ekeke]

Yes, because he’s a better defender and we were expected to do a lot of defending.

No because he was one of our best players playing as an attacking winger

 

[ATXRedDevil]

Feels like LB should be the priority given Shaw’s age and injury history and Dorgu being more of a situational player. If we get a good fee for Dalot and replace him with Kayode, that would be ideal, but he and Maz would be fine RB options for next year.

 

[JohnnyLaw]

No because he was one of our best players playing as an attacking winger

He sure wasn’t before that City game, there’s no basis exept hindsight to claim otherwise.
If Carricks first game had been Fulham at home, Dorgu doesn’t start that game on the LW- if at all- I can guarantee you that.

 

[Ekeke]

He sure wasn’t before that City game, there’s no basis exept hindsight to claim otherwise.
If Carricks first game had been Fulham at home, Dorgu doesn’t start that game on the LW- if at all- I can guarantee you that.

He was very good left wing vs Burnley where he also got an assist, against Brighton he was back to leftback and then he played 2 games against City and Arsenal where he was back to leftwing and back to being among our best attackers

Wolves is the only game he played on the wing and that wasnt the case. But everyone was crap that game

 

[JohnnyLaw]

He was very good left wing vs Burnley where he also got an assist, against Brighton he was back to leftback and then he played 2 games against City and Arsenal where he was back to leftwing and back to being among our best attackers

Wolves is the only game he played on the wing and that wasnt the case. But everyone was crap that game

.. And Leeds.

You can’t say he was BACK to being among our best attackers, because he never were.

His ability in the final third has consistantly been an issue since he joined.

 

[Ekeke]

.. And Leeds.

You can’t say he was BACK to being among our best attackers, because he never were.

His ability in the final third has consistantly been an issue since he joined.

Leeds we played a 3421 he was an AM

Yes hes been one of our best attackers in a bunch of recent games.

 

[JohnnyLaw]

Leeds we played a 3421 he was an AM

Yes hes been one of our best attackers in a bunch of recent games.

RAM/RW, you’re splittling hairs. He was tasked with attacking and posts from post game thread clearly state that he basically played the same position as in the Newcastle game. You yourself noted how he couldn’t beat his man.

Apart from City and Arsenal game there’s only Burnley and Newcastle.

 

[Ekeke]

RAM/RW, you’re splittling hairs. He was tasked with attacking and posts from post game thread clearly state that he basically played the same position as in the Newcastle game. You yourself noted how he couldn’t beat his man.

Apart from City and Arsenal game there’s only Burnley and Newcastle.

Its Amorim's system under Amorim. He's not an AM .He's been one of our best attackers as a winger. Not an AM

 

[DJ_21]

Really think we should try and sign Di marco. I know he’s like 28 but he’s quality at attacking and gets tons of assists.

 

[SparkedIntoLife]

Anyone know any decent young LBs? The market looks weak these days. I'm not sure about Nathaniel Brown. Dorgu's looked so much more comfortable on the wing. I don't think Leon or Amass will be ready next season but maybe we can hope that one of them will replace Shaw in 2027 when his contract is up.

 

[JohnnyLaw]

Its Amorim's system under Amorim. He's not an AM .He's been one of our best attackers as a winger. Not an AM

…

Watching him as our right sided attacker is horrible. He can't dribble or cross or pass accurately, struggles to even keep the ball. I don't know if Amorim is hesitant to try Lacey due to how poorly Fletcher has performed, but i really doubt that Lacey would've been any worse.

Completely cancelled out by Gudmunsson. Had a lot of foot races and came out 2nd all the time.

Back on the right, but was really poor. Maybe he just isn't very good.

Looks so slow.

Decent energy and ok first half but needs to just accept he cannot beat a man.

and he is supposed to be fast, lost every foot race.

Problem with him having to play winger is that he doesn't have a single standout attacking quality other than his pace. He can't rely on dribbling to get past his man, he can't cut inside and strike a ball cleanly, he can't get defenders off balance with his first touch, and he's not a great crosser. Decent first half but really faded in the second, tried to kick and rush and got shut down by Gudmonssun.

Let’s be honest, the Newcastle performance caught us out. Today was more like what I expected from Dorgu playing RW. He was rubbish.

 

[Bertie 2 Hats]

I've been impressed with Yuel Helafu.. he's one for the future though.. The type of left back we need is someone like prime Evra.. and as for right back.. prime Irwin.

 

[Lash]

We also know that a player like Elanga can score 11 goals and have 20 assists in 2 PL seasons, it doesn't mean we were wrong to sell him or that we should buy him back. Those are incredibly small samples to even make a case that Dorgu should be our LW going forward. That's begging for mediocrity. He can play there now until the summer but surely you don't think "We don't need a LW, because it's already sorted with Dorgu". He can barely take players on, and that's okay, but not as a LW.


He was playing on the flank by himself with little support. You're saying this as if it's just because he switched position and that it has nothing to do with him getting confidence or adapting to the pace of the league. He hasn't even been tried as a fullback recently so how can you know he wouldn't be good there?

He was primarily a LB in Lecce, so how has he not played there? There is absolutely a lot of evidence he could be a good left back because he has the defensive ability, the work rate and the offensive output for a LB, but not as a LW (long term, yes, I know about his couple goals as a winger).

I agree, so he wasn't performing well in either aspect as a wingback really. Why does he need to be tried at fullback though, when he's performing as winger for us? I just don't see the logic at all.

He wasn't though really, @Ekeke even said at the time when we signed him I think, he looks more like a winger. I just don't see where the idea he has the defensive ability and offensive output for a LB, because he's literally never shown it. His offensive output comes from when he's played as a winger. I don't think his defensive ability has been good in the actions I've seen, he jsut has a tremendous work rate.



What about that screams - yeah, let's stick him at LB? It's obvious he was earmarked as a wingback for his work rate and attacking qualities, not defensive qualities, which you need as a LB. Do you have any examples of him playing well as a LB or exhibiting the defensive qualities needed to play LB? I personally haven't found one - I'm certainly open to be shown differently.

 

[Ekeke]

…

So you havent noticed a difference in our formation since Amorim has left. Not worth bothering with

 

[JohnnyLaw]

So you havent noticed a difference in our formation since Amorim has left. Not worth bothering with

What are you on about?

You claimed he has been one of our best attacking players, against Leeds he played as the RAM which is an inverted forward role just like the one he played against Newcastle just as several of these posts make reference to.
Be honest, if he’d have scored or assisted in that game would you not have used that as further proof that he’s better in an attacking role?

Just going through his performance thread so clearly reflects my view aswell, many people make posts attesting to the same thing as me, that he’s generally been awful going forward. He’s a poor dribbler, at best inconsistant crosser and just technically very mediocre.
Even after the Brighton game where he played as a LB, several poster actually say he had a bad game and that attacking was the worst aspect his performance.

 

[Trigestis]

I agree, so he wasn't performing well in either aspect as a wingback really. Why does he need to be tried at fullback though, when he's performing as winger for us? I just don't see the logic at all.

He wasn't though really, @Ekeke even said at the time when we signed him I think, he looks more like a winger. I just don't see where the idea he has the defensive ability and offensive output for a LB, because he's literally never shown it. His offensive output comes from when he's played as a winger. I don't think his defensive ability has been good in the actions I've seen, he jsut has a tremendous work rate.



What about that screams - yeah, let's stick him at LB? It's obvious he was earmarked as a wingback for his work rate and attacking qualities, not defensive qualities, which you need as a LB. Do you have any examples of him playing well as a LB or exhibiting the defensive qualities needed to play LB? I personally haven't found one - I'm certainly open to be shown differently.

He's not performing as a winger. He scored a couple screamers, but his general play as a winger or inside forward leaves much to be desired. It's like saying Hojlund was doing a great striker's job because he scored some nice goals for a period. I don't understand how fans are satisfied with a winger that can't dribble or create chaos for defenders, or be consistently dangerous.

And yes, he was. He played the majority of his games for Lecce as a left back. We've got Dorgu close to top 10 of all players for defensive duels won in the Premier League and near the top for aerial duels won among fullbacks/wingbacks, and you're wondering where the defensive ability comes from? He is regularly making great tackles, blocking crosses, winning aerials and winning duels, so his defensive qualities are very much at display in every game. He is literally a left back with an instinct for joining attack and has phenomenal work rate, so how you haven't found a quality for him as a LB is a bit odd to me. How is his attack good enough for a winger, but not for a left back? That makes no sense.

The idea is that Dorgu at LB opens up space for a much better winger/inside forward. It would be great to have Diomande on LW with Dorgu supporting him from behind and/or overlapping, creating overload in the attacking phases that the defenders will have a nightmare to defend against. You can not honestly believe that we're going to have Dorgu as one third of an attacking trio next season?

 

[Maclooch]

How has nobody mentioned Hugo Bueno?

 

[Bertie 2 Hats]

How has nobody mentioned Hugo Bueno?

Hugo Bueno.. Club: Wolves.. Position: Left-Back or Left Wing-Back.. Age:23.. Nationality: Spanish.. Height:1.8m.

 

[R0nald0]

I’m not saying your wrong, but if we’re making the call that Dorgu’s future is as a full back, then we’ll need to sign a left sided forward player which will probably be more expensive than a right back.

Personally, as I and others have said, I see Dorgu’s future as a Park type. The kind of squad player that’s needed when you want extra solidity in big away games.

I think Dorgu could do as you say and be a defensive LW for big games - I do think he's capable though to be a starter at LB - unless we can brink in a Lewis Hall then I would be happy with Dorgu as a starter at LB. LW is covered with Cunha as the starter and we have Mount as a back up and also Amad/Mbuemo who can also play there is needed, along with some good young players. I think we only bring in a rotation LW if we manage to sell Mount and we then bring in a Yan Diamande or similar

 

[ROFLUTION]

Really think we should try and sign Di marco. I know he’s like 28 but he’s quality at attacking and gets tons of assists.

It’s a decent shout. There’s a real lack of good options currently, so a mature player would make sense if the price is not crazy. Shouldn’t be. Only contracted until june 27.

 

[Lash]

He's not performing as a winger. He scored a couple screamers, but his general play as a winger or inside forward leaves much to be desired. It's like saying Hojlund was doing a great striker's job because he scored some nice goals for a period. I don't understand how fans are satisfied with a winger that can't dribble or create chaos for defenders, or be consistently dangerous.

And yes, he was. He played the majority of his games for Lecce as a left back. We've got Dorgu close to top 10 of all players for defensive duels won in the Premier League and near the top for aerial duels won among fullbacks/wingbacks, and you're wondering where the defensive ability comes from? He is regularly making great tackles, blocking crosses, winning aerials and winning duels, so his defensive qualities are very much at display in every game. He is literally a left back with an instinct for joining attack and has phenomenal work rate, so how you haven't found a quality for him as a LB is a bit odd to me. How is his attack good enough for a winger, but not for a left back? That makes no sense.

The idea is that Dorgu at LB opens up space for a much better winger/inside forward. It would be great to have Diomande on LW with Dorgu supporting him from behind and/or overlapping, creating overload in the attacking phases that the defenders will have a nightmare to defend against. You can not honestly believe that we're going to have Dorgu as one third of an attacking trio next season?

I mean, that's just not true. He literally creates chaos and his general play as a winger against the best teams in the leagues has been good. It's not, it's like if Hojlund is scoring nice goals for a period and being effective against the best teams in the league, we should work out how we continue to let him do that. Genuinely, so what if he's not the most effective 1 on 1 dribbler - Amad is miles better in that regard, yet that didn't mean anything recently.

His defensive qualities are on display for an attacker, not as a defender, not sure where you're getting the stats from but nothing is screaming top LB here: https://datamb.football/P_Dorgu_Full-back_stats/. Compare him to an actual LB in Hall: https://datamb.football/L_Hall_Full-back_stats/. You just have to watch how he played against Brighton in the cup as a LB, his general performances at wingback vs his performances as a winger for us and you can see where he's more effective. He's not though, you attack as LB very differently to when you play as a winger and you defend differently as a winger to a LB. He's not shown a good attacking instinct while having to cover a lot of ground (he'd have to do that whilst LB) and basic stuff like the first goal Arsenal scored against us for defending, he's average at. He has phenomenal work rate and physiciality, that doesn't make you a good defender, but it means you can defend well as an attacker.

That's fine as a premise, but it completely ignores the things he's good at and things he's not good at. I don't see why not if he keeps being effective, it brings balance to the team. I don't see how you could want to go into next season hoping he might be a good LB, despite watching him play well as a winger.

 

[Ekeke]

He's not performing as a winger. He scored a couple screamers, but his general play as a winger or inside forward leaves much to be desired. It's like saying Hojlund was doing a great striker's job because he scored some nice goals for a period. I don't understand how fans are satisfied with a winger that can't dribble or create chaos for defenders, or be consistently dangerous.

And yes, he was. He played the majority of his games for Lecce as a left back. We've got Dorgu close to top 10 of all players for defensive duels won in the Premier League and near the top for aerial duels won among fullbacks/wingbacks, and you're wondering where the defensive ability comes from? He is regularly making great tackles, blocking crosses, winning aerials and winning duels, so his defensive qualities are very much at display in every game. He is literally a left back with an instinct for joining attack and has phenomenal work rate, so how you haven't found a quality for him as a LB is a bit odd to me. How is his attack good enough for a winger, but not for a left back? That makes no sense.

The idea is that Dorgu at LB opens up space for a much better winger/inside forward. It would be great to have Diomande on LW with Dorgu supporting him from behind and/or overlapping, creating overload in the attacking phases that the defenders will have a nightmare to defend against. You can not honestly believe that we're going to have Dorgu as one third of an attacking trio next season?

A wide forward's role is to score goals. It might not be what you want from a winger, but its what hes doing well

 

[Trigestis]

I mean, that's just not true. He literally creates chaos and his general play as a winger against the best teams in the leagues has been good. It's not, it's like if Hojlund is scoring nice goals for a period and being effective against the best teams in the league, we should work out how we continue to let him do that. Genuinely, so what if he's not the most effective 1 on 1 dribbler - Amad is miles better in that regard, yet that didn't mean anything recently.

His defensive qualities are on display for an attacker, not as a defender, not sure where you're getting the stats from but nothing is screaming top LB here: https://datamb.football/P_Dorgu_Full-back_stats/. Compare him to an actual LB in Hall: https://datamb.football/L_Hall_Full-back_stats/. You just have to watch how he played against Brighton in the cup as a LB, his general performances at wingback vs his performances as a winger for us and you can see where he's more effective. He's not though, you attack as LB very differently to when you play as a winger and you defend differently as a winger to a LB. He's not shown a good attacking instinct while having to cover a lot of ground (he'd have to do that whilst LB) and basic stuff like the first goal Arsenal scored against us for defending, he's average at. He has phenomenal work rate and physiciality, that doesn't make you a good defender, but it means you can defend well as an attacker.

That's fine as a premise, but it completely ignores the things he's good at and things he's not good at. I don't see why not if he keeps being effective, it brings balance to the team. I don't see how you could want to go into next season hoping he might be a good LB, despite watching him play well as a winger.

Can you point to an example where he consistently creates chaos for defenders? Most of the time he stops attacks by passing back or refusing to take players on. That should be a winger's forte. If he keeps scoring goals, great, but the point is that he likely won't and therefore LW should not be ignored in the summer. Can you really see him scoring 13-16 goals in the league as a starting LW? Why is Ornstein reporting that we're looking to sign a left winger if we have Dorgu who is supposedly "it"?

His defensive qualities were shown as a left wingback under Amorim where he had to do both jobs in defense and offense. You say nothing is screaming top LB, but what exactly is screaming top LW? Compare Dorgu to Doku, Neto, Gakpo, Bowen, Salah or Saka and I'm sure you will see clear attacking differences on the statistics there as well. You're using a one game sample to conclude that he is not a good LB.
And again, I'm not sure why you're saying he's not good defensively as a LB. He is ranked #14 for duels won in the Premier League among all players. He keeps up with players and blocks their crosses and tackles well, and is really solid aerially. He could potentially contribute greatly as a marauding LB with a proper LW ahead of him.

 

[Trigestis]

A wide forward's role is to score goals. It might not be what you want from a winger, but its what hes doing well

He scored two screamers that he will probably not score again any time soon, and didn't really come from winger play. A left footed LW is not going to score many goals. In fact, how many left footed LWs in PL are there that are doing well?

 

[Ekeke]

He scored two screamers that he will probably not score again any time soon, and didn't really come from winger play. A left footed LW is not going to score many goals. In fact, how many left footed LWs in PL are there that are doing well?

Yeah hes not going to score many because hes injured.