Which is more important: a top striker or a top right-winger?

Nevilles.Wear.Prada

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Well said mate! I think you have properly pointed out what I mentioned on another thread. If the system right now is 4-2-3-1, we need players suitable for the positions. I don't think we have players in the squad who actually qualify to fill those positions and if they do, they're old or not good. We need a CB, DM, Wingers and in the future a proper striker. It will take sometime for us to really build a championship winning team but what we have right now is not so bad either.
Im sick of it really. Annoyed me even during SAF times. Since he got the results he got away with it. But it has to stop. This is a game where they put the ball a few millimeters at the edge of corner spot to gain an advantage ffs. The game has become so competitive every single advantages count. And every single weaknesses magnified.
 

charlenefan

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It's games like today where the lack of winger hurts us

Next week it'll be the lack of striker though and then the week after it'll be CB
 

TrustInJanuzaj

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I’m still leaning towards a winger. We don’t create enough. It’s not like we are making loads of missed chances. Frankly I don’t see how Haaland changes that performance much tonight and in many games this season. Greenwood is a star as well I reckon.
 

Stacks

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I’m still leaning towards a winger. We don’t create enough. It’s not like we are making loads of missed chances. Frankly I don’t see how Haaland changes that performance much tonight and in many games this season. Greenwood is a star as well I reckon.
A great striker can create their own chances through movement. Haaland only needs a half chance. If we get a winger who will score? Greenwood has 2 league goals. Mid table teams sometimes have leading scorers due not to the fact they are creative but the quality of the striker
 

gerdm07

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We need a top DM more than anything. I just think a good passing DM changes so many things.

Besides, Diallo might be ready next year and Cavani and Greenwood could combine for 20 next year at striker.
 

amolbhatia50k

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Right winger. Greenwood, Martial and the team will be more clinical last season. Coming summer Sancho. Next summer CF.
 

UNITED ACADEMY

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I have said it before. Sancho or top winger who can play both left and right first. We have enough numbers for goal scorers to hold and evaluate the striker position for another year but we don't have enough creative player or assist providers. If Pogba and Bruno injured, we will left with James who often make bad decision making to provide us assists.

Today shows, the lack of quality in creativity and both Rashford and Greenwood showed that their first instinct are not to cross or pass or assist but to shoot and have attempt on goal.
 

TrustInJanuzaj

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A great striker can create their own chances through movement. Haaland only needs a half chance. If we get a winger who will score? Greenwood has 2 league goals. Mid table teams sometimes have leading scorers due not to the fact they are creative but the quality of the striker
Greenwood is 19 and looks on the cust of great things. A player like that can easily go from 2 goals to 20 in the right situation. I’m not saying I don’t want Haaland because I do, I just think going all out and signing Grealish and Sancho would do so much more to propel us. The idea that you need one 30 goal striker is a little old fashioned. In the right settup, greenwood, Rashford, martial, Grealish, Sancho, Cavani, Bruno would all contribute enough goals between them.
 

keithsingleton

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Cavani had recently showed how a top striker can improve us but he's not a long term solution.

The right-wing position has been neglected for years but a real talent there could bring more joy for whoever plays up-front.

This is not just about Sancho and Haaland as we may have to consider other options.
Neither.... Priority has ALWAYS BEEN a CB. Followed by your two options
 

AneRu

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I have said it before. Sancho or top winger who can play both left and right first. We have enough numbers for goal scorers to hold and evaluate the striker position for another year but we don't have enough creative player or assist providers. If Pogba and Bruno injured, we will left with James who often make bad decision making to provide us assists.

Today shows, the lack of quality in creativity and both Rashford and Greenwood showed that their first instinct are not to cross or pass or assist but to shoot and have attempt on goal.
Right on, I think a creator will help us more than a scorer as we already have a few good goal scorers in Rashford, Greenwood, Bruno and Martial (when he is on it). A Sancho will boost the overall goal output of the team and be just as transformative as a great goal scorer like Haaland would be. Sancho, Bruno and Rashford as the three behind a striker will be potent as scorers and creators meaning that just shutting down Bruno wouldn't kill our flow as it does currently.

Greenwood and Martial will then be adequate as strikers, in competition at first but I'd be backing Greenwood to win that one eventually. Ideally I'd be selling Martial to buy journeyman striker who is capable of coming in and doing the business when Greenwood is tired or going through a slump.
 

UNITED ACADEMY

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Right on, I think a creator will help us more than a scorer as we already have a few good goal scorers in Rashford, Greenwood, Bruno and Martial (when he is on it). A Sancho will boost the overall goal output of the team and be just as transformative as a great goal scorer like Haaland would be. Sancho, Bruno and Rashford as the three behind a striker will be potent as scorers and creators meaning that just shutting down Bruno wouldn't kill our flow as it does currently.

Greenwood and Martial will then be adequate as strikers, in competition at first but I'd be backing Greenwood to win that one eventually. Ideally I'd be selling Martial to buy journeyman striker who is capable of coming in and doing the business when Greenwood is tired or going through a slump.
Just to add it as well. Both Sancho and Bruno are similar in sense of also capable to score goals and create chances/assists. So signing someone as calibre as Sancho quality means we are not just adding creativity in squad but also adding another player who can score goals. Sancho is more efficient additional ''at the moment'' than Haaland or pure striker.
 

Andersons Dietician

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I think creativity is more important in this team. If it came to it I’m buying Sancho or Grealish before I buy a striker. However let’s say Haaland was available this summer and no one is moving for Grealish or Sancho then I’d go for Haaland as to not lose him. He’s the only striker I’d take as I just don’t see him being as effective as he can be unless we address the bigger issue which is our quality of football from wide positions and centrally.
 

AneRu

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Just to add it as well. Both Sancho and Bruno are similar in sense of also capable to score goals and create chances/assists. So signing someone as calibre as Sancho quality means we are not just adding creativity in squad but also adding another player who can score goals. Sancho is more efficient additional ''at the moment'' than Haaland or pure striker.
Agreed
 

lex talionis

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Right on, I think a creator will help us more than a scorer as we already have a few good goal scorers in Rashford, Greenwood, Bruno and Martial (when he is on it). A Sancho will boost the overall goal output of the team and be just as transformative as a great goal scorer like Haaland would be. Sancho, Bruno and Rashford as the three behind a striker will be potent as scorers and creators meaning that just shutting down Bruno wouldn't kill our flow as it does currently.

Greenwood and Martial will then be adequate as strikers, in competition at first but I'd be backing Greenwood to win that one eventually. Ideally I'd be selling Martial to buy journeyman striker who is capable of coming in and doing the business when Greenwood is tired or going through a slump.
I’ve been thinking this the last few days.

IF we can be confident that Greenwood is on the cusp of greatness and IF (which seems likely) we sell Pogba, then I’d be on board with forgetting about Haaland and bringing in Grealish and Sancho.

Heresy perhaps, but we can hang in there with McFred as Garner beds into the first team. But if the budget is there for Rice, that’s great, but we lack so much creativity up front that it would be almost criminal to pass up on both of Grealish and Sancho. This, assuming there’s no real shot at Haaland for a number of reasons.
 

Tallis

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I’ve been thinking this the last few days.

IF we can be confident that Greenwood is on the cusp of greatness and IF (which seems likely) we sell Pogba, then I’d be on board with forgetting about Haaland and bringing in Grealish and Sancho.

Heresy perhaps, but we can hang in there with McFred as Garner beds into the first team. But if the budget is there for Rice, that’s great, but we lack so much creativity up front that it would be almost criminal to pass up on both of Grealish and Sancho. This, assuming there’s no real shot at Haaland for a number of reasons.
I have been on that train for some time because I just don’t think Haaland will come here and the other options are either not great or unproven or unaffordable. Mason has been developing even though the numbers haven’t shown it so far this season. But his all round game, physicality and link up play is much better vs last season.
 

horsechoker

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Top Striker like Kane, Haaland, Lewandowski
Kane would be the best option but the most expensive.

Haaland is great but his agent is the biggest problem

Lewandowski would be good too but similar to Zlatan where he'd be slowly in decline but still playing great.
 

Idxomer

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We've seen this season and last, Liverpool and City winning the league without top strikers.

A creator from the wings will fix how one-sided the team looks and will lighten the burden off Bruno.
 

Cathy Ferguson

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We just spent quite a bit on Diallo, but he is not ready to play 50 games a season, or even, 30, is he?

There is no way we can afford Kane or Haaland.
 

UNITED ACADEMY

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I’ve been thinking this the last few days.

IF we can be confident that Greenwood is on the cusp of greatness and IF (which seems likely) we sell Pogba, then I’d be on board with forgetting about Haaland and bringing in Grealish and Sancho.

Heresy perhaps, but we can hang in there with McFred as Garner beds into the first team. But if the budget is there for Rice, that’s great, but we lack so much creativity up front that it would be almost criminal to pass up on both of Grealish and Sancho. This, assuming there’s no real shot at Haaland for a number of reasons.
Well, if we have Grealish, Sancho and Bruno behind the striker then there is no doubt that our next target will be top class striker. But that ain't happening, we are not going to get both of them in one window even if we sell Pogba. Those two alone will cost ''minimum'' 170m-180m pounds this summer. To me, our net spend will not be more than 60m so if we sell Pogba then the best and my realistic summer signings will be Kessie and Sancho.
 

Stacks

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Greenwood is 19 and looks on the cust of great things. A player like that can easily go from 2 goals to 20 in the right situation. I’m not saying I don’t want Haaland because I do, I just think going all out and signing Grealish and Sancho would do so much more to propel us. The idea that you need one 30 goal striker is a little old fashioned. In the right settup, greenwood, Rashford, martial, Grealish, Sancho, Cavani, Bruno would all contribute enough goals between them.
He is nowhere near "on the cusp". Has been one of the lowest performing attacking players in the entire league this season which is as far from the cusp as possible. Even his XG is low. If he was just missing loads of chances or creating but teammates and his finishing was lettign him down then maybe but he has been figured out mostly this season and needs to add a lot of new tricks to his arsenal to be great. Who goes from 2 goals to 20?
What is this magical set up you keep referring to?
 

Walrus

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Striker is the more important position. You can cope with an average winger, but it’s much harder to cope without someone solid up front.

Haaland has to be the priority, but failing that I would prioritise a top quality DM over any of the attacking positions.
 

Ali Dia

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We need to get our long term striker in asap so we can build chemistry. Cavani and Greenwood were making decent runs that our lads weren’t picking out and then the times the lads would play the ball the forwards were static. Only training and matches with the proper personnel is going to breed that confidence and familiarity that we are still clearly missing. If Haaland is for sale I’ve a feeling Ole will dig his heels in and force the club to act. Whether we get him or not is another question altogether.

The wings.... don’t get me started. Our most creative and hard working winger (not inside forward) is Dan James. We clearly need a few more creative players.

Annoyingly Sancho should still be our top priority this summer and move Greenwood central but I just don’t see us going back in for him. I hope I’m wrong because he’s the creator we need in the forwards and someone we could use to rest Bruno and Rashford without a massive drop in quality.
 

lex talionis

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Well, if we have Grealish, Sancho and Bruno behind the striker then there is no doubt that our next target will be top class striker. But that ain't happening, we are not going to get both of them in one window even if we sell Pogba. Those two alone will cost ''minimum'' 170m-180m pounds this summer. To me, our net spend will not be more than 60m so if we sell Pogba then the best and my realistic summer signings will be Kessie and Sancho.
The remnants of COVID this summer suggest at least to me that transfer fees won't be what selling clubs like Dortmund would normally wish for. We'll see about that, but Normal just isn't here yet.

Do we really believe that each of Grealish and Sancho will go for 90m each? I really don't see that happening. But let's say that each goes for 80m each. If we sell Pogba for 75m, which should not be unimaginable (closer to 100m in a Normal time, right?), we can afford both Jack and Jadon this summer. It remains to be seen whether they would be willing to join United, but I don't see them going to City (seems Haaland will, however) and I don't see Liverpool and Chelsea being interested. I suppose we can't rule out Spurs taking a sniff at either, but objectively speaking United is the superior club on almost every count, except the stadium and living in London.

The headwinds against this thesis are the following:
  1. Dortmund will sell Haaland and thus are unlikely to sell Sancho as well.
  2. We arguably need a top CDM more than we need both Grealish and Sancho.
It's hard to argue against either of these points but Dortmund cashing in on both Haaland and Sancho may not be that impossible to imagine. Dortmund have proven an incredible ability to find and attract young gems to their club. They'd probably rake in 225m between the sale of those two and can accomplish a great deal by retooling with young gems that we rarely ever seem to be able to find ourselves.

As for the CDM, there's no doubt it's a real need. But if we sell Pogba we need a Pogba replacement and I'm not sure that Donny is the answer. I really like Donny, but I don't see him as the Pogba replacement -- Grealish is the Pogba replacement. And if we believe Greenwood is the future at CF then we have a hole at RW and despite Diallo's potential I see Sancho as the obvious answer there. We can make do with the players we have at CDM and bed Garner in and see if he can develop into the next Carrick. I don't know if he is can be the next Carrick, but I'm ok with giving him a real chance.
 

Cloud7

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Unless the striker that we get is a Suarez or Aguero type who can take a defense apart on their own, then a right winger is more important. We simply don’t create enough chances.
 

UNITED ACADEMY

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The remnants of COVID this summer suggest at least to me that transfer fees won't be what selling clubs like Dortmund would normally wish for. We'll see about that, but Normal just isn't here yet.

Do we really believe that each of Grealish and Sancho will go for 90m each? I really don't see that happening. But let's say that each goes for 80m each. If we sell Pogba for 75m, which should not be unimaginable (closer to 100m in a Normal time, right?), we can afford both Jack and Jadon this summer. It remains to be seen whether they would be willing to join United, but I don't see them going to City (seems Haaland will, however) and I don't see Liverpool and Chelsea being interested. I suppose we can't rule out Spurs taking a sniff at either, but objectively speaking United is the superior club on almost every count, except the stadium and living in London.

The headwinds against this thesis are the following:
  1. Dortmund will sell Haaland and thus are unlikely to sell Sancho as well.
  2. We arguably need a top CDM more than we need both Grealish and Sancho.
It's hard to argue against either of these points but Dortmund cashing in on both Haaland and Sancho may not be that impossible to imagine. Dortmund have proven an incredible ability to find and attract young gems to their club. They'd probably rake in 225m between the sale of those two and can accomplish a great deal by retooling with young gems that we rarely ever seem to be able to find ourselves.

As for the CDM, there's no doubt it's a real need. But if we sell Pogba we need a Pogba replacement and I'm not sure that Donny is the answer. I really like Donny, but I don't see him as the Pogba replacement -- Grealish is the Pogba replacement. And if we believe Greenwood is the future at CF then we have a hole at RW and despite Diallo's potential I see Sancho as the obvious answer there. We can make do with the players we have at CDM and bed Garner in and see if he can develop into the next Carrick. I don't know if he is can be the next Carrick, but I'm ok with giving him a real chance.
I believe Grealish might even valued closed to 100m this summer. 1) He just signed new contract last summer, 2) having very good season (even better than last season), 3) Aston Villa has very rich owner. So These three aspects are fair evaluation to say he will cost more than his last summer price tag 70m.

Sancho probably cheaper than Grealish now due to his contract situation but still probably 70m-80m range if we are talking cheaper. So yes their total price is likely between 170m-180m. No chance, absolutely no chance we will spend that much of money even if we sell Pogba and none will pay more than 60m on Pogba who only has 1 year left in his contract. You have wonderful dream so I wish you well alongside it.
 

TrustInJanuzaj

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He is nowhere near "on the cusp". Has been one of the lowest performing attacking players in the entire league this season which is as far from the cusp as possible. Even his XG is low. If he was just missing loads of chances or creating but teammates and his finishing was lettign him down then maybe but he has been figured out mostly this season and needs to add a lot of new tricks to his arsenal to be great. Who goes from 2 goals to 20?
What is this magical set up you keep referring to?
Well on general performances he’s probably been our best attacker this season. His overall game has improved and I honestly think he’s outperformed Rashford in general play most of the campaign. He should have scored more goals but he’s been a little unlucky on occasion not to grab more, not to mention the fact we simply don’t produce enough opportunities for any of our front men really.

Young players can make massive leaps very quickly, especially when you have the ability of someone like Greenwood. Sancho was a youth player at city the season before getting 20 goal contributions. He’s always been a goalscorer and you can see how good is finishing is, I really think it’s a matter of when not if the goals start flying in for him.
 

Polar

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We need a striker the most, but suppose we get more value for the money if we go for a RW.

Seems like top strikers are scare resources and a bit of a gamble. Lewandowski on a 3y contract would be a safe one:cool:

Sancho (75m) will likely have great impact. I’m not sure what kind of striker we get for the same price, but I’ll be surprised if we get someone with the same “impact potential”.
 

Wewinsoon

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We've seen this season and last, Liverpool and City winning the league without top strikers.

A creator from the wings will fix how one-sided the team looks and will lighten the burden off Bruno.
How you can compare this, with a city team that is overall more offensive and better players, we need a scorer People dont score enough
 

lex talionis

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I believe Grealish might even valued closed to 100m this summer. 1) He just signed new contract last summer, 2) having very good season (even better than last season), 3) Aston Villa has very rich owner. So These three aspects are fair evaluation to say he will cost more than his last summer price tag 70m.

Sancho probably cheaper than Grealish now due to his contract situation but still probably 70m-80m range if we are talking cheaper. So yes their total price is likely between 170m-180m. No chance, absolutely no chance we will spend that much of money even if we sell Pogba and none will pay more than 60m on Pogba who only has 1 year left in his contract. You have wonderful dream so I wish you well alongside it.
If you’re right that it would take 100 million to pry Grealish from Villa then that’s obviously not going to ever happen and he’ll see out his career at Villa, never having won a club trophy of any kind. But that’s quite an assumption on your part, though quite possibly one that proves to be true.

100 million is a suspicious number. Out of curiosity, from where do you derive this number? And since all we can do is speculate, do you believe Grealish would be happy to remain at Villa, a club which has no realistic aspirations of CL football, let alone a PL trophy?
 

Cman

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We could do with both but that’s never going to happen in one window. I think our best move is to go for Sancho now. He’s gettable and should be for a reasonable fee. ($75mish). Will create and score goals. Haaland would be great but can’t see it happening not this year anyways and after him I don’t think there’s anyone available that would give us the quality we need for years to come
 

caid

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I think i'd be more focused on individual players than the position. We probably need both. Or maybe neither with Greenwood and Amad around which makes it hard to judge.
Unless its an established top tier player then I dont really see the point and there aren't that many of them available.
 

UNITED ACADEMY

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If you’re right that it would take 100 million to pry Grealish from Villa then that’s obviously not going to ever happen and he’ll see out his career at Villa, never having won a club trophy of any kind. But that’s quite an assumption on your part, though quite possibly one that proves to be true.

100 million is a suspicious number. Out of curiosity, from where do you derive this number? And since all we can do is speculate, do you believe Grealish would be happy to remain at Villa, a club which has no realistic aspirations of CL football, let alone a PL trophy?
I have already explained, it’s based on three things:1) He just signed new contract last summer, 2) having very good season, even better than last season means he will cost more than 70m as it was last summer price tag, 3) Aston Villa has very rich owner