Who should we play up front?

[LouTheBlade]

Always an interesting topic prior to the new season. The four (arguably five if you include Wardy) strikers we currently have in our first team are quite closely matched. Despite the differences of opinion some of us have, the lads on our books should run each other close IMO.

At the moment Cresswell is the automatic choice IMO, based on his form towards the end of last season. Its then down to who you play alongside him and at the moment I would be tempted to start with Chedwyn.

Someone posted an interesting thought about having regular partnerships and not mixing selection (apologies to that poster I dont remember who it was). This was suggested as a means of developing form and familiarity which I thought was a very astute suggestion.

I personally see Cresswell as competition for Bogdanovic; and Evans as competition for Henderson. That is the way I would look at it personally. I see the first two as supporting strikers who move around a lot and they both like to drift in from the left quite often. The other two I see as centre forwards as Evans and Hendo arent the most mobile but they will offer themselves as a focal point in attack.

If I was manager (perish the thought) I would be looking at either;

Evans and Cresswell

or;

Henderson and Bogdanovic

Any thoughts?????

 

[scouseblade]

Always an interesting topic prior to the new season. The four (arguably five if you include Wardy) strikers we currently have in our first team are quite closely matched. Despite the differences of opinion some of us have, the lads on our books should run each other close IMO.

At the moment Cresswell is the automatic choice IMO, based on his form towards the end of last season. Its then down to who you play alongside him and at the moment I would be tempted to start with Chedwyn.

Someone posted an interesting thought about having regular partnerships and not mixing selection (apologies to that poster I dont remember who it was). This was suggested as a means of developing form and familiarity which I thought was a very astute suggestion.

I personally see Cresswell as competition for Bogdanovic; and Evans as competition for Henderson. That is the way I would look at it personally. I see the first two as supporting strikers who move around a lot and they both like to drift in from the left quite often. The other two I see as centre forwards as Evans and Hendo arent the most mobile but they will offer themselves as a focal point in attack.

If I was manager (perish the thought) I would be looking at either;

Evans and Cresswell

or;

Henderson and Bogdanovic

Any thoughts?????

Might be Cresswell Henderson Ward, with Ward and Cresswell playing wider, making the formation more a 4-5-1

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

Two flies in the ointment for me, firstly, I'm not sure how much KB wanted Boggy in the 1st place and dare I say it, he may be an automatic 1st choice (if you know what I mean). The 2nd is Hendo, we know he's KB's favourite but as discussed many times before, I think we are a better team without him added to the fact he's not fit and may be sold anyway (I don't think we'd be even contemplating BT on loan with Hendo still on the books).

I haven't seen enough of Boggy tbh so in the absence of that, I'd go with Cresswell and Ched in a 4-4-2 with Wardy on the right and Yeates on the left. It's unliklely that KB will go with that though and I suspect he'll go with Boggy and Ched up front, Cresswell left with Ward/Yeates competing for the right wing spot. The obvious caveat to that is dropping Ched and bringing, say Ertl into the middle for his beloved 4-5-1.

 

[LouTheBlade]

Might be Cresswell Henderson Ward, with Ward and Cresswell playing wider, making the formation more a 4-5-1

Yes I could see that. My assumptions were based on 4-4-2 obviously but with our personnel we could easily adopt the system you just mentioned.

 

[Grecian2000]

On what I've seen it'd be Cresswell and Evans (based on I haven't seen much of Boogy at all and everything I've seen from Henderson would mean he wouldn't get near to starting).

I would like to see Ward alongside Evans at some point but with "proper" wide men (i.e. not Cresswell).

 

[LouTheBlade]

Two flies in the ointment for me, firstly, I'm not sure how much KB wanted Boggy in the 1st place and dare I say it, he may be an automatic 1st choice (if you know what I mean). The 2nd is Hendo, we know he's KB's favourite but as discussed many times before, I think we are a better team without him added to the fact he's not fit and may be sold anyway (I don't think we'd be even contemplating BT on loan with Hendo still on the books).

I haven't seen enough of Boggy tbh so in the absence of that, I'd go with Cresswell and Ched in a 4-4-2 with Wardy on the right and Yeates on the left. It's unliklely that KB will go with that though and I suspect he'll go with Boggy and Ched up front, Cresswell left with Ward/Yeates competing for the right wing spot. The obvious caveat to that is dropping Ched and bringing, say Ertl into the middle for his beloved 4-5-1.

Some of those assumptions regarding KB's tactical choices are probably correct. I also agree with the Ched, Cresswell combo. I would go with that myself. I hate seeing Cresswell wide left because although he does a very decent job there, he's completely wasted! The guy is a six yard man and needs to be in the middle waiting for crosses/flick ons.

I dont agree with the Boggy thing though. That suggestion has been made before and I feel it is mere shit stirring by whoever started it (probably an anti-blackwell campaigner). I cant imagine he would take on a player that he doesn't want. KB is far too temperemental for that, he wouldn't stand for it. Also the benefits of having a maltese striker do not out-weigh what we would have had to pay him in signing on fee and wages to fight off interest from Leeds and a Serie A team..........so sorry, not buying that story.

 

[DP8789]

I would go with ched and boggy upfront and then play cressy wide left and ward wide right - those 4 pushing forward would get plenty of goals - i can understand why you think cresswell is wasted on the left Lou but his work ethic in terms of tracking back makes him a good shout for that postion (taylor sometimes needs the help) and we are lacking in the left wing dept. when ward isnt fit yeates can slot into that position nicely.

the only issue with who we play upfront though, comes down to what tactics we are going to play and also which formation, i prefer 442 with wingers cutting inside or getting to the by line, i think weve always played our best stuff when we have done that. Id like too see us get rid of henderson he can be lazy and very one dimentional (long ball) something which i hope we can move away from, especially at home.

 

[Ollessendro]

Always an interesting topic prior to the new season. The four (arguably five if you include Wardy) strikers we currently have in our first team are quite closely matched. Despite the differences of opinion some of us have, the lads on our books should run each other close IMO.

At the moment Cresswell is the automatic choice IMO, based on his form towards the end of last season. Its then down to who you play alongside him and at the moment I would be tempted to start with Chedwyn.

Someone posted an interesting thought about having regular partnerships and not mixing selection (apologies to that poster I dont remember who it was). This was suggested as a means of developing form and familiarity which I thought was a very astute suggestion.

I personally see Cresswell as competition for Bogdanovic; and Evans as competition for Henderson. That is the way I would look at it personally. I see the first two as supporting strikers who move around a lot and they both like to drift in from the left quite often. The other two I see as centre forwards as Evans and Hendo arent the most mobile but they will offer themselves as a focal point in attack.

If I was manager (perish the thought) I would be looking at either;

Evans and Cresswell

or;

Henderson and Bogdanovic

Any thoughts?????

Easy choice. Evans and Cresswell. We saw the makings of a partnership last year. Evans has a good touch, decent arial ability, is strong and I'm sure (given a few games) will find his scoring touch. Cresswell is simply a goal scoring machine and is brilliant at getting himself in the right place at the right time.

If one gets injured (or we have to play Cressy wide left) then bring Boggy in. Henderson shouldn't be anywhere near the first team ..... although i'm sure he will.

 

[davidpinder]

Agree with Jim on this with what he thinks he will start with ie 4-5-1 Boggy up top with cressy and ward wide. I would go with Evans and boggy in a 4-4-2 with cresswell on the left and ward on the right, however with the quality of our full backs that might be risky.

 

[frechyblade]

Always an interesting topic prior to the new season. The four (arguably five if you include Wardy) strikers we currently have in our first team are quite closely matched. Despite the differences of opinion some of us have, the lads on our books should run each other close IMO.

At the moment Cresswell is the automatic choice IMO, based on his form towards the end of last season. Its then down to who you play alongside him and at the moment I would be tempted to start with Chedwyn.

Someone posted an interesting thought about having regular partnerships and not mixing selection (apologies to that poster I dont remember who it was). This was suggested as a means of developing form and familiarity which I thought was a very astute suggestion.

I personally see Cresswell as competition for Bogdanovic; and Evans as competition for Henderson. That is the way I would look at it personally. I see the first two as supporting strikers who move around a lot and they both like to drift in from the left quite often. The other two I see as centre forwards as Evans and Hendo arent the most mobile but they will offer themselves as a focal point in attack.

If I was manager (perish the thought) I would be looking at either;

Evans and Cresswell

or;

Henderson and Bogdanovic

Any thoughts?????

I'm not so sure about not mixing selections for strikers. It is probably one position were it is more important to pick the inform striker. Strikers tend to have streaks were everything they hit goes in, there instinct takes over and it is less about forging a partnership/understanding with another striker. Unlike a defender were you need to have an understanding with your 'defensive team'.

So I'm for mixing it up for the strikers.

UTB

 

[SouthEssexBlade]

Depends on the style. If we are now a cultured passing team, working it through midfield then Boggy is probably essential as the one forward who can drop-off and link it up.

 

[Grecian2000]

If we are now a cultured passing team, working it through midfield then Boggy is probably essential as the one forward who can drop-off and link it up.

Hendo it is then.

 

[raul]

Depends on the style. If we are now a cultured passing team, working it through the midfield.

Bloody hell, how long have I been asleep?

 

[Ollessendro]

Hendo it is then.

Aye, what was I thinking. Play big Darius up top and knock up to him. 2 defesnive midfielders I hear you say? Yes please! But how high can this Ertl kick it? very. Job's a good un.

 

[mattbianco1]

Someone posted an interesting thought about having regular partnerships and not mixing selection (apologies to that poster I dont remember who it was). This was suggested as a means of developing form and familiarity which I thought was a very astute suggestion.

That was me.

I thought that because of the promotion season. We had Kabba & Shipperley then Akinbiyi & Webber (not sure on which order.) You need to build partnerships. For instance look how deifferent our defence was when Kilgallon was injured or not here. Morgan was so used to playing with him that when he wasn't there, mistakes were made.

This season I see Evans & Bogdanovic as the similar players so split them up. I saw Bogdanovic at Rotherham and he like to get the ball down and run with it or hold it up and look for the pass.

Hendo & Cresswell for me are the powerhouses that take the knocks and win the headers.

So for me it's Cresswell & Evans/Bogdanovic or Henderson & Evans/Bogdanovic. NEVER play Cresswell & Henderson

 

[bricktop]

I would start with Evans and Cresswell as they ended the season well, and i think both have got goals in them. If that is not the case i'm all for rotating the forward line and keeping the in form in the shirt.

Not sure why Hendo gets such a slagging, as he is not afraid to do the dirty work, puts his head in where it hurts and seems to be able to strike up a good understanding with whoever he plays with. Besides before he got injured last season he was bang in form

 

[LouTheBlade]

Not sure why Hendo gets such a slagging, as he is not afraid to do the dirty work, puts his head in where it hurts and seems to be able to strike up a good understanding with whoever he plays with. Besides before he got injured last season he was bang in form

Agreed. I dont understand the abuse he gets either. He gives 100% and has a reasonable record as well as being highly regarded by other clubs. Two of my mates are Bristol City fans and they think he's class!!!! I wouldn't go that far myself but I do rate him as a good Championship centre forward.

His problem is his complete inability to keep his cool and a tendency to wrestle with opposition centre halves - which ultimately leads to conceding a free kick. I think this is what irks his critics the most. His attitude and focus can sometimes drift and he still needs to work on that a little but those who slate his ability are talking rubbish. He has scored some good goals for United and chips in with the odd assist as well. He's good when we can keep him on the pitch!

Despite that, Cresswell and Evans does seem like the in form choice based on where we left off. Hendo and Boggy will push them all the way though.

 

[bricktop]

Another thing that irks me is the fact that whilst Hendo gets routinely slated, Billy Sharp is widely lauded as a goal machine. Hendo was a good solid signing and a player who has weighed in with his fair share of goals and probably one of the Championship strikers that defenders hate playing against. Billy on the other hand had a poor goalscoring ratio, and became an expensive mistake who became a divisive figure.

 

[SBSP]

Can't possibly leave out Cresswell based on his form last season.

I'd probably go with Evans alongside him, I know he hasn't done the business yet but I still think I he gets a few goals early on he will go on to have a very good season.

Supplying these two I would have Ward and Yeates on the wings. If on he left both can get to the line and pu a decent cross in. On the left both can cut inside and have a pop, also them being able to swap side during the game will keep their full backs on their toes.

If one of the geo strikers is out I'd replace either one with Boggy.

If I had my way Hendo would have been gone a while ago. I know he was top scorer last year but I think he is shit. If he spent a bit more time paying attention to the game rather than wrestling with their centre half and moaning to the ref he could be half decent.

 

[Blade]

i don't think it's either fair or relevant to try and compare sharp with henderson. We have never played to sharp's strengths or even tried to concentrate on getting the ball into him in a way that he has shown he can do the business with every other club he's played for. When Henderson has played regardless of who has joined him we have concentrated on playing through him in nearly every game regardless of whether we have got the distribution right or not.

For me the two are exact opposites, sharp has the natural goalscoring talent that will mean played in the right manner he will bang in goals. Henderson has little real talent in my view but is used as a battering ram/target to aim for.

For next season I would prefer to see evans and ward up front but it's never going to happen under Blackwell. Whilst Cresswell helped convince me he wasn't as shit as I thought I still don't think over a full season he is capable of scoring 20+ goals and feel we should be looking to use someone with more life in them than the 1/2 years that he has left in him especially seen as I can't see him coping well if he was involved in more than 30+ games. I also think there's a good chance of teams catching on to him now and any half decent centre back should be able to cope against him.

I'll happily admit I haven't seen enough of Bogdanovic to judge him properly yet or say where he would fit in but I would be extremely happy to see Henderson leave us for anything more than 500k. I lose count of not only the number of fouls he has conceded but more importantly the number of times he has sipmly passed the ball to the opposition, for me although he has moments where he looks like he can set up his colleagues the majority of the time he looks like he hasn't worked out how to tie his shoe laces or even which foot to put which boot on. Also our play with Henderson in the side has been massively more predictable and less entertaining than our play without him.

 

[DuncDisorderly]

Isn't it nice to be arguing about which of four really decent strikers, (three of which scored 15ish goals last year) we are going to play..?




Shame we've only one Leon Britton though...

 

[Ollessendro]

Not sure why Hendo gets such a slagging, as he is not afraid to do the dirty work, puts his head in where it hurts and seems to be able to strike up a good understanding with whoever he plays with. Besides before he got injured last season he was bang in form

He's been a major disappointment in United shirt. Rarely fit, poor goals to game ratio and ill disciplined. Sure he has ability and works hard, but he has failed to perform at the Blades. For a £2m signing he's been poor. The major point is tha i think we play worse with him in the team. This is not his fault, but it happens. The temptation to knock it long is just too much for the rest of the players. Also Henderson gves away a lot of fouls. A lot seem to be unfair on him/us, but again it happens. I don't doubt his ability, nor do I dislike him but I don't think he should play ahead of Evans (an all round better player for me), Creswell (better goal scorer) and Bogdanovic (more dangerous).

The other thing is (as SBSP points out) that Creswell simply has to start. Purely for his goal scoring ability. you are then looking for a partner. Evans has already partnered Cressy well and hence would be my first pick. I'd alsp argue Cressy and Boggy would be better together as Cressy and Henderson would be just too static and predictable. Maybe there's a case for hendo to play if Cressy plays out left, but I feel that we play worse with Hendo in the team.

 

[Grecian2000]

Also Henderson gves away a lot of fouls. A lot seem to be unfair on him/us, but again it happens.

I always find this "he's hard done to by refs" astonishing.

Try thinking back to when he played against us. He invaraibly fouled Morgan every time the ball was heading in their direction, usually as soon as the ball had left the foot and before the ref had turned toward him. It's a foul. As soon as the ref has spotted it happening then it's a foul every time the ball comes toward him.

He still does it!

 

[Ollessendro]

I always find this "he's hard done to by refs" astonishing.

Try thinking back to when he played against us. He invaraibly fouled Morgan every time the ball was heading in their direction, usually as soon as the ball had left the foot and before the ref had turned toward him. It's a foul. As soon as the ref has spotted it happening then it's a foul every time the ball comes toward him.

He still does it!

whether he actually warrants the worst disciplined player in the Championship (in terms of giving away fouls) is irrelevant (in my eyes). The fact is the fouls are given and it often costs us. It's just another of the con's of playing him. As stated before I am not anti Henderson, but I think we have better. For me the con's often outweigh the pro's when it comes to big Darius being in the team.

 

[lenners]

Meanwhile our £3m man has a fabulous goals per game ratio, can't control the ball, wanders around aimlessly and magically becomes a better player simply for not being Henderson.

 

[norfolkblade]

Meanwhile our £3m man has a fabulous goals per game ratio, can't control the ball, wanders around aimlessly and magically becomes a better player simply for not being Henderson.

As I keep saying, when the £3m man scores a couple, the floodgates will open IMO, he scored a good'un last night I'm led to believe, so perhaps this is the start he needs. I watched him several times at Norwich when he was there, and he was bloody quality, his time will come, don't forget, he's still ultimately learning his trade, so link him with Cressy and he may well learn a lot about being a striker.

 

[Jim Chimmerney]

Meanwhile our £3m man has a fabulous goals per game ratio, can't control the ball, wanders around aimlessly and magically becomes a better player simply for not being Henderson.

Here's one for you, a different approach I'll grant you. How about answering the initial question, who would YOU play up front and why ?

 

[Ollessendro]

Meanwhile our £3m man has a fabulous goals per game ratio, can't control the ball, wanders around aimlessly and magically becomes a better player simply for not being Henderson.

So would you advocate playing Henderson up front (ahead of Evans) then?

Oh and can you answer Jim's question, who would you play up front??

 

[SwissBlade]

Depends how we play, but in a 4-4-2 for me its Evans and Boggy.

Boggy - I haven't seen much of him, but I get the impression he's a clever player with the ball at his feet.

Ched, likewise needs the ball into feet.

Cresswell - I'd mix him on the wings, probably I'd use him on the left but can support the front two, he's a simple mans footballer and doesn't complicate his passing.

Yeates/ Ward can probably swap around on the wings and should be able to deliver the right balls to the strikers

in a 4-5-1 (4-3-3) stated by Blackie that he prefers this away from home - I'd agree this is our most dynamic system, away. Because like it or not you will rarely have an away game where you're not under pressure for periods. So 4-5-1 allows us to quickly adapt to a 4-3-3 when going forward. In this system:

Boggy - Up top on his own in a 4-5-1, but

Cresswell & Ched making up the other two of the 3 as required...

I think the great thing about these two is that they're pretty interchangeable and can play a number of roles.

Wardy and Yeates could be used from the bench away as well, thus resting their tender hamstrings