Are we going to end up with a pop gun attack?

[davek]

Koeman has already voiced his concerns with the age of the squad, we have to many young players and to many old players, he will try and spread the age of the squad, the remit will be that.

You've swallowed the Kool Aid mate. I dont see any grand plan here, just decisions made on partial evidence.

 

[Zatara]

Sure, but I'd take an attacking unit who you can expect to get 10-15 goals a season each, over a striker you can expect to get 30 on his own. For one simple reason - the variety in the attack then gets the whole team up the field and you get more goals from midfield, and you control a game better.

Don't get me wrong, if we could have "Bournemouth" Lukaku most weeks, he'd be sensational and I'd be urging Everton to throw £300k a week at him if need be, just get him to sign. But we don't - we don't even get close to that most weeks from Lukaku, and that's the issue.

My view, to use the analogy of this thread, is at the moment we have a "bazooka" attack - one big massive killer weapon that is too easy to dodge. I'd prefer a "machine gun" attack with bullets peppering in from all angles; much harder to avoid.

I prefer three bazookas on wheels rather than one static bazooka.

 

[Goat]

You've swallowed the Kool Aid mate. I dont see any grand plan here, just decisions made on partial evidence.

Im fully confident that our manager will provide us with a squad able to compete on all 4 fronts this season.

So yes im drinking the Kool Aid, lets see how it tastes on the 1st Sept.

 

[Papa Shango]

Im fully confident that our manager will provide us with a squad able to compete on all 4 fronts this season.

So yes im drinking the Kool Aid, lets see how it tastes on the 1st Sept.

Probably like Chang.

 

[Goat]

Probably like Chang.

No pls.

 

[Lanolin]

Sure, but I'd take an attacking unit who you can expect to get 10-15 goals a season each, over a striker you can expect to get 30 on his own. For one simple reason - the variety in the attack then gets the whole team up the field and you get more goals from midfield, and you control a game better.

Don't get me wrong, if we could have "Bournemouth" Lukaku most weeks, he'd be sensational and I'd be urging Everton to throw £300k a week at him if need be, just get him to sign. But we don't - we don't even get close to that most weeks from Lukaku, and that's the issue.

My view, to use the analogy of this thread, is at the moment we have a "bazooka" attack - one big massive killer weapon that is too easy to dodge. I'd prefer a "machine gun" attack with bullets peppering in from all angles; much harder to avoid.

See I'd prefer the bazooka with support from machine guns.

A striker who gets you 20 goals and wide players/attacking midfielders who get 10 each is the dream for me. It can be done with Lukaku too, if you have sufficient quality in those positions. The fact that Mirallas, DCL, Valencia, Bolasie and Deulofeu couldn't get 10 goals is not because Lukaku scored 25, it's because they aren't good enough to do it. While Costa may have more to his game than Lukaku, that isn't why Hazard and Pedro scored more than their equivalents in our side, it's just because they're better players.

I should point out that I'm not necessarily talking about keeping Lukaku here, just saying that you can still (theoretically) replace with him a proper goalscorer and bring in better attacking threats as well, rather than choosing one or the other. We can still get more goals elsewhere without losing the biggest threat in the team, that's what the best teams do.

 

[davek]

Im fully confident that our manager will provide us with a squad able to compete on all 4 fronts this season.

So yes im drinking the Kool Aid, lets see how it tastes on the 1st Sept.

Let's see what it tastes like next May.

 

[Jebus_lives]

Fair point on United picking up after Zlatan limped out. However, they had the quality of Rashford, Martial, Lingard + Pogba backing them up from advanced MF positions. Our front three + one would not be up to that.

I'm not sure that Rashford, Martial, Lingard are that much to write home about. They're hardly Messi, Suarez and Neymar.

 

[davek]

I'm not sure that Rashford, Martial, Lingard are that much to write home about. They're hardly Messi, Suarez and Neymar.

Of course they're not. But they'll be far better attackers than we end up with this season.

 

[Goat]

Let's see what it tastes like next May.

LOOL

Thats right David, you move dem goalposts.

 

[sheedys big toe]

Why is everyone so convinced Rom is gone, i see no incentive to Everton in selling him, so why would you.

Its critical he stays this season for me, no matter who comes in.

Next summer is a different matter.

To be honest, I can't see rom going this window, there's no talk of any offers or interest, but I would take a gamble on Giroud

 

[davek]

LOOL

Thats right David, you move dem goalposts.

No goalposts being moved. If your manager changes methods completely we'll need to wait and see how it works out. We can comment along the way like...

 

[Goat]

No goalposts being moved. If your manager changes methods completely we'll need to wait and see how it works out. We can comment along the way like...

Well no, we will know on the 1st Sept whether he is opting out of the "number 9".

 

[suey_11]

No goalposts being moved. If your manager changes methods completely we'll need to wait and see how it works out. We can comment along the way like...

Agreed we will have to see but a few things you've said are said in a way that it's taken as fact.

Oh and cheer up I feel it's not all doom and gloom.

 

[Slippin Jimmy]

I mentioned in the summer transfer thread my concern that with the very likely departure of Lukaku we are faced with an almighty struggle next season to get a striker in to fill the massive chasm he'll leave. So far we have not been linked with the type of marquee signing that we could reasonably believe could come in and take up at least most of the slack in terms of getting on the scoresheet as often as RL has in his time here. Sandro may or may not come in. However, I dont see him as a type that will lead the line in the fashion that we as a club have been used to with our tradition. The existing players we have upfront are unimpressive. For one they cant be adapted to the role of an out and out forward and for another they look pretty limited in what they do in their 'proper job', be that Bolasie and Lookman attacking from out wide or Calvert-Lewin loitering without intent in behind the striker/final third.

Here's my suspicion: I think Koeman will forsake going for a like for like replacement for Lukaku this summer. He looks to me to be thinking of going with a type of attacking unit adopted over the park and adopted elsewhere: a high pressing front three with an advanced MF (probably Klaassens) to augment the attack by making forward runs into the box.

I think this will be madness for us. First, we wont have the class to pull that one off: Lallana/Firmino/Mane + Coutinho are very good quality. That's how they blitzed the PL in the first half of last season and picked up the points that eventually seen them over the CL spot line. Our front 3+1 would be nowhere near that level of quality. Second, we have a lot more games this season and what happened to Liverpool (and what happens to other teams who adopt a manic high press) over the course of the season would come home to roost here too: we'd have a core first team on its knees and/or dropping down with injuries by late winter.

Anyway, that's my thoughts/fears on what I believe this summer's attacking incomings are being prioritised for. Hopefully Koeman goes out and blows that out of the water with a Giroud signing, but I really think we are headed into 2017/18 with a re-shaped and dangerous departure from what we traditionally have gone for before.

Thoughts?

Seems we are just after kids and bargains, can't see us doing much with signings like these