The Winger Thread

[SUIYHA]

Am getting a little concerned at the lack of winger links recently. Konoplyanka and Ayew have both joined other clubs on free transfers since this thread was created...

We need a MINIMUM of TWO wingers brought in this summer.

It's quite simple. Pace and dribbling ability from the wide areas will leave more space for Kane, will keep teams pegged back and not committing men forward against us and will give us the chance to unlock tight defences with ten men behind the ball. We don't have that at the moment.

Who will be doing this for us next season I wonder...

 

[milo]

I don't agree that we need to sign two wingers. I'd be content if we just bought an upgrade on Townsend.

 

[Gutter Boy]

I'm happy with Lamela, Chadli, Townsend + a new LWF as our 4 WF options.

 

[GrimsbyYid]

I don't agree that we need to sign two wingers. I'd be content if we just bought an upgrade on Townsend.

I agree with this. I'd be happy with chadli, lamela, Pritchard and a new pacy winger. Dembele wriksen to add to that for a good 6.

 

[Cochise]

I agree, we need a direct player in the mix that will offer more than Townsend.

 

[jimmyb]

I'm hoping that Nathan Oduwa might get a look in for Europa League and League Cup games, if he doesn't go out on loan. Very quick. Good skills. End product still needs some work but I can see him causing our lesser opposition a lot of problems.

 

[Gutter Boy]

I'm hoping that Nathan Oduwa might get a look in for Europa League and League Cup games, if he doesn't go out on loan. Very quick. Good skills. End product still needs some work but I can see him causing our lesser opposition a lot of problems.

I liked him in King's testimonial. He's a LWF too, which is the side we are short

 

[DubaiSpur]

Starting wingers have to be Lamela and Chadli, for obvious reasons. Keep Townsend for depth. Forget an LWF, because Pritchard's best work seems to come from cutting in off the left flank (judging by the U-21 games he's had), and I'd rather he be our backup to Chadli. Ideally, we should be looking for a striker who can also operate on the right wing, not the left: that way, he can ride the bench/provide a rotation option up front in PL games, start up front in the EL/cup games if Soldado does his 'rooster-eyed gun-wielding extra in a Rambo movie' routine again (Which would also allow Townsend some game time in those games), or start out wide on the right if Lamela loses form/gets injured, or if Soldado actually starts off well and makes a case for taking up our backup striker position.

 

[Bedfordspurs]

We desperately need a viable player on the right

Lamella works hard but is massively one dimensional and ineffective in This league so far

We need pace and directness on one side at least so that we have a mix of threats

All out attacking 3 we're guilty of being so samey last season it made us easy to play against

It's why we looked better with Dembele depite his flaws as he has a great strength in dribbling and holding the ball in the opposition half

 

[billyiddo]

He's not ineffective, he's sloppy in possession yes, but creates more than anyone bar Eriksen but more of his chances created have been converted (suggesting a better quality of ball maybe?) so you can't say he's ineffective in light of that fact, imv as creating chances is most definitley an 'effect'

Ineffective in terms of goals scored i would agree - but our most effective creative player can not be be described as an ineffective player in such a general way as it's patently not true

 

[SUIYHA]

I'd share your faith if I'd seen Lamela or Chadli dribble past a Premier League opponent before. But I can't recall ever having seen it. I sure have seen Lamela try an awful lot. But he never gets past anybody.

I'll ask the question again - name one other team in the top seven that any of our wingers could start for. The answer is there aren't any. And so we should be looking to change that.

I want someone who can open up a tight game like this:

Show me when Lamela or Chadli have ever shown themselves to have that in their locker. In fact, show me just one gif/vine/youtube video of them successfully dribbling past one player in the Premier League. Until I've seen that, I don't want either of them to be first choice going into the new season.


Let me spell it out clearly. We finished as high as we did because of Kane's goals. We are going to face a MASSIVE struggle for him to replicate anything like the form he showed last year, as he is no longer an unknown quantity and defences will not only be keeping an extra man on him but will also have spent hours analysing his game and figuring out his weaknesses in advance of the match. marked. The media will immediately turn on him as a one-season wonder if he doesn't hit the ground running next season - unlikely after featuring in a summer international tournament. The ONLY way we are going to alleviate this pressure is to have attacking players that can run, at pace, at opposition defences with GENUINE close control and dribbling ability - the sort of player that will scare them into leaving more space for Kane.

Every top side has tricky dribblers in attack. The closest thing we have to one is Eriksen, but I don't think out wide is where he's best suited, nor does he possess the raw pace for this. Throwing Pritchard in at the deep end would be a big gamble and I'm not sure if he has the pace either. There's no way Liverpool will be as bad again next season so if we don't fix this glaring deficiency then we're looking at a battle with Southampton, Swansea and Stoke for 6th place as a best case scenario.

 

[jimmyb]

The problem in this discussion is that Lamela isn't, and hasn't ever been, a proper winger.

He has done his best work for Spurs when playing more centrally (or at least drifting into a more central position).

 

[GrimsbyYid]

Yeah. Just Kane, Chadlis amazing goal tally had. To do with it, or eriksens, or lloris in goal. Nope. Only Kane.

We'd be fine with chadli and lamela, it we do need a more direct option with lace for some variety. Shame Townsend is utter turd as that's the kind of player we need.

 

[Ginola99]

I'm hoping that Nathan Oduwa might get a look in for Europa League and League Cup games, if he doesn't go out on loan. Very quick. Good skills. End product still needs some work but I can see him causing our lesser opposition a lot of problems.

Only ever seen him play 4/5 times but always looks good to me.. Not sure why he hasnt been mentioned much on here.

 

[Bedfordspurs]

He's not ineffective, he's sloppy in possession yes, but creates more than anyone bar Eriksen but more of his chances created have been converted (suggesting a better quality of ball maybe?) so you can't say he's ineffective in light of that fact, imv as creating chances is most definitley an 'effect'

Ineffective in terms of goals scored i would agree - but our most effective creative player can not be be described as an ineffective player in such a general way as it's patently not true

He is predictable and has nothing in his locker that shows any variety

half his assists were from corners weren't they?!?! Don't get me wrong decent corner takers seem to not exist anymore but it doesn't mean he has "created" the chance so to speak.

 

[billyiddo]

He is predictable and has nothing in his locker that shows any variety

half his assists were from corners weren't they?!?! Don't get me wrong decent corner takers seem to not exist anymore but it doesn't mean he has "created" the chance so to speak.

Ineffective to me is someone who doesn't impact games (or have an effect), whether the player is one dimensional or not doesn't really come in to it. And from what i've seen this season I think he cleary impacts games, both offensively and defensively. Has a lot to improve on though i agree, but that's not the discussion

 

[Bedfordspurs]

Ineffective to me is someone who doesn't impact games (or have an effect), whether the player is one dimensional or not doesn't really come in to it. And from what i've seen this season I think he cleary impacts games, both offensively and defensively. Has a lot to improve on though i agree, but that's not the discussion

That's why I think he is ineffctive

I don't think he impacts games much at all

He has to step this season as there are no more excuses

 

[jimmyb]

I repeat......we have to stop playing him as a winger. Otherwise we will continue to see ineffective performances from him.

He finished last season strongly when playing most of each game from a largely central position.

 

[DubaiSpur]

I repeat......we have to stop playing him as a winger. Otherwise we will continue to see ineffective performances from him.

He finished last season strongly when playing most of each game from a largely central position.

I see no problem with playing him out wide, as long as he's also given a license to drift into the middle and a firm order to run down the channels on the sides of the box when needed: i.e, an inside-forward role.

 

[Finney Is Back]

I repeat......we have to stop playing him as a winger. Otherwise we will continue to see ineffective performances from him.

He finished last season strongly when playing most of each game from a largely central position.

I wonder whether Pochettino is reluctant to play him centrally because he loses the ball so easily and regularly?.... It is generally more dangerous when losing the ball centrally then it is to lose it in wide positions.