Is there actually a need for a 20 goal a season Striker or is this a Myth?
These are the teams above Derby in the league and it shows their top 3 scorers. Stats are from BBC so think include cup games.
Team Goals Top 3 scorers
Cardiff 64 Whittingham 8, Gunnarson 8, Helguson 8
Hull 57 Aluko 8, Koren 8, simpson 7
Watford 76 Vydra 20, Deeney 16, Abdi 10
Palace 67 Murray 30, Zaha 6, Dikgacoi 5
Forest 60 Sharp 11, Mcgugan 8, Blackstock 7
Brighton 57 Mackail-smith 11, Ulloa 9, Barnes 7
Leicester 60 Nugent 14, Wood 9, Knockeart 8
Bolton 60 Eagles9, Ngog 7, Sordell 7
Boro 57 Mcdonald 12, Jutkiewicz 10, Miller 6
Derby 59 Ward 12, Robinson 9, Sammon 8
With the exception of Watford and Palace none have a striker who is in the "20 goal a season" bracket.
You look at the likes of Mackail-Smith with 11 for £3.5m.
Watfords 20 goal striker is being linked with £15m moves all over Europe. Nugent has 14 goals and is on much more money than we would pay for 3 strikers all together.
Cardiff clear at the top have no one in double figures.
Neither do Hull in 2nd Spot.
Here is the scoring charts of players on more than or same as Ward with the teams respective position.
League Top Scorers Team Goals Next Scorers League Placing
Murray 30 67 Zaha 6, Dikgacoi 5 4th
Austin 28 57 Paterson 6, Mcann 5 11th
Rhodes 23 48 K Richards 5, Rochina 5 22nd
Vydra 20 76 Deeney 16, Abdi 10 3rd
Wood 18 Split between millwall and Leicester 15th and 7th
Ince 17 56 Delfounso 7, Dicko 5 17th
Deeney 16 3rd
Beccio 15 51 McCormack 7, Diouf 6 16th
Nugent 14 60 Wood 9, Knockeart 8 7th
ebanks blake14 51 Sako 10, Doyle 7 19th
King 13 57 Elliot 8, Zigic 8 13th
S Davies 12 56 Baldock 10, Adomah 7 24th
Only Watford Palace and Leicester have striker/s with more than Ward and are above us.
Whilst it would be great to have this 20 goal a season striker, how much does one cost in terms of purchase and/or wages. Can only see Murray who we could of afforded and that was when he was free.
What happens when this striker gets injured? Blackburn relying on £7m Rhodes to keep them up who has scored more than half their goals. Austin gets injured for Burnley then who? Same with Murray really.
Total goals scored by us as well is in and around what the teams above us.
For me we have conceded far too many.
We need a number of players who can score goals from all over the pitch. Yes having a 20 goal a season striker would be great but we aren't going to sign a proven one because they cost too much. Even average scorers cost more than we would be willing to pay as the stats show. If we do get one it will be a gamble on a lower league player that turns out good.
The 20 goal a season striker wont be along anytime soon but are they actually a necessity as many believe?
20 Goal Striker Myth?
posted on 9/4/13
Super article Pablo. So all we need now is a 10 goal a season striker who can bring other players into the game. Cheap as chips, dip your bread Nigel.
Sammon OUT.
posted on 9/4/13
So all we need now is a 10 goal a season striker who can bring other players into the game. Cheap as chips, dip your bread Nigel.
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We definitely should have more goals with the good chances and penalties missed. While we should have scored more we still have 59 league goals which is not bad. The conceded column needs working on for definite. Our first 11 this season has shown it can compete with any team but when a few get injured or suspended like on our bad run we had, we relied on the youngsters to get us through. While blooding them will help their development and for next year, if we are to challenge for top 6 (which i don't think we're far from) we shouldn't have to throw them all in at once. Saturdays bench included 4 under 21's and a pensioner.
For me its not the 20 goal striker we need its a little bit more quality in depth in several positions. CB being priority.
posted on 9/4/13
Yes, excellent article. I think the main problem we have is that we dont create enough chances, so that if we miss the chances we do get then we are stuffed and end up losing like we did against Ipswich. OK, I know we created some chances, some of them half chances, but by and large we miss the likes of Hughes due to there not being anyone else who is (as) creative. So I feel we need a (destructive) midfielder, another (creative) midfielder, another forward who can score goals clinically and another centre half. Whether the the younger players we have will mature into those roles who knows, but unless we do improve in those areas we will have another "next season" the same as this. On another note it would also be encouraging if the Board would come out with an intention of where they want the club to be going because at the moment we can only guess, and our guess is that they just aren't interested.
posted on 9/4/13
Good stuff Pablo, personally I think our problem is not creating enough clear cut chances, our MF does need to improve it's shooting too, ironically I think a fit and hungry Martin could do this, and maybe a fast, right or left sided midfielder to run onto a ball. Not sure if Martin will be that man though.
posted on 9/4/13
As regards 'destructive' midfielder, Everton aren't renewing Phil Neville's contract.
Not that we could afford him but wouldn't it make a nice change for one of these 'twilight' players to help out a smaller club instead of squeezing every penny they can out of a game that's already made them multimillionaires..? Like Bellamy at Cardiff: probably still on a huge chunk but less than he could've got elsewhere.
Agree about 'needing' a 20 goal + striker but it certainly helps!
posted on 9/4/13
Robbie Savage offered to help out Rangers 666, we could maybe try him.
posted on 9/4/13
we lost 4 games at home
Burnley
Crystal palace
Hull
Ipswich
all which we were far the better team and we would have won 3/4-0 if someone could get the damn ball in the effing net
posted on 10/4/13
There is the need in any successful team for a Striker who can poach goals, create goals, run with pace at defenders and score goals from nothing.
Some call that the complete centre forward. The last two we had played together, Saunders and Goddard. My god, I'd pay 30 odd quid to watch even one player of that quality come to Derby.
I say, sod the 20 goal striker, get us a 30 goal striker and I will start to believe that the ambition is returning to pride Park. And if you could throw in an experienced midlfield general into the mix, I'd be estatic. Probably start drinkin again
posted on 11/4/13
sadly, we don't play the type of football to create the chances for a 30 goal per striker.
Even top class strikers spurn a lot of chances, to score 30 would require 100 chances IMO over the season.
You only have to dig out your old videos and DVDs and see how we played under Cox and Smith, with men flooding the area when attacking, not as now, with your main striker receiving the ball outside the area, being expecting to start the move that he is then expected to end.
posted on 12/4/13
Have seen us linked with Jamie Mackie a couple of times. I can't see there could be much in this as he is likely to be in demand if he becomes available. We did nearly sign him from Plymouth before QPR nipped in. He is definitely Clough's type of player for effort and would be a great signing if it were possible. Waghorn and Fryatt are others we seem perennially linked with. I don't think it's all paper talk and I expect at least one striker coming in during the close season, hopefully one good enough to make a significant difference.
I agree with others that we don't create enough chances. I think we have the type of midfielders in Bryson and Hendrick who can get into the box but that we lack the forward quality to either hold the ball up long enough or to use their skill to create something.
If a deal is done to sell Hughes and loan him back for next season, as is rumoured, I think we could see a significantly stronger team next season, assuming Clough is allowed to use money raised. But we have heard similar talk before about buying "established Championship players" before a large chunk of cash was removed from Clough's budget a couple of years ago and the plug was pulled on the transfers of Eustace and Waghorn.