Promotion Maths

[SoccerHQ]

We will finish in the top 6.

[Matt Collins]

I am now pretty confident we'll finish top six

We do need to find the right attacking blend still though. We basically spent all of the benteke money on four strikers but none of them can really play that role. Ayew and McCormack want to play deeper, gestede is immobile and needs a partner, kodjia doesn't want to play with his back to goal.

Bruce needs to find an answer but without buying another striker I'm still struggling to see what it is. Could be a diamond maybe with grealish behind kodjia and ayew? Would be harsh on adomah but it's the only way I can think of playing to our strikers strengths

[Ad@m]

I am now pretty confident we'll finish top six

We do need to find the right attacking blend still though. We basically spent all of the benteke money on four strikers but none of them can really play that role. Ayew and McCormack want to play deeper, gestede is immobile and needs a partner, kodjia doesn't want to play with his back to goal.

Bruce needs to find an answer but without buying another striker I'm still struggling to see what it is. Could be a diamond maybe with grealish behind kodjia and ayew? Would be harsh on adomah but it's the only way I can think of playing to our strikers strengths

Yep, considering the attacking options we have, 22 goals scored from 20 matches is embarrassing and will be what stops us going up if that happens.

[Old Kodjia]

I am now pretty confident we'll finish top six

We do need to find the right attacking blend still though. We basically spent all of the benteke money on four strikers but none of them can really play that role. Ayew and McCormack want to play deeper, gestede is immobile and needs a partner, kodjia doesn't want to play with his back to goal.

Bruce needs to find an answer but without buying another striker I'm still struggling to see what it is. Could be a diamond maybe with grealish behind kodjia and ayew? Would be harsh on adomah but it's the only way I can think of playing to our strikers strengths

I've said for some time that an out and out number 9 is probably far more important in terms of priority than a lot of people think.

We play 433.  A midffield threesome that includes Jedinak and Grealish means only 1 place left for grabs.

I know a decent striker will be tough to get in January but the difference that he would make shouldn't be underestimated.

[Risso]

I am now pretty confident we'll finish top six

We do need to find the right attacking blend still though. We basically spent all of the benteke money on four strikers but none of them can really play that role. Ayew and McCormack want to play deeper, gestede is immobile and needs a partner, kodjia doesn't want to play with his back to goal.

Bruce needs to find an answer but without buying another striker I'm still struggling to see what it is. Could be a diamond maybe with grealish behind kodjia and ayew? Would be harsh on adomah but it's the only way I can think of playing to our strikers strengths

I've said for some time that an out and out number 9 is probably far more important in terms of priority than a lot of people think.

We play 433.  A midffield threesome that includes Jedinak and Grealish means only 1 place left for grabs.

I know a decent striker will be tough to get in January but the difference that he would make shouldn't be underestimated.

Exactly right, look what a difference Gayle has made to Newcastle.  We've actually lost fewer games than them, but a regular goal scorer has turned draws into wins for them, and narrow wins in hammerings.

[Ad@m]

We've got three strikers who scored 20 goals a season last time they were at this level. We are not short of goal scorers!

[Old Kodjia]

We've got three strikers who scored 20 goals a season last time they were at this level. We are not short of goal scorers!

It is all relevant to how we play.  Gestede & McCormack were each part of a 2 man strike force (I'm not sure about Kodjia but he isn't a number 9 anyway)

If we continue with one up top, which is 99% likely, given that this is the way that Bruce plays, then we don;t have a natural number 9.  It's like asking Grealish to play Jedinak's role or vice versa.

[Ad@m]

Everyone keeps telling me Steve Bruce is just the sort of experienced manager we need. If he can't manage to get the best out of three strikers who can all score 20 goals a season at this level then he'll be just as culpable as anyone if we don't go up.

[Old Kodjia]

Everyone keeps telling me Steve Bruce is just the sort of experienced manager we need. If he can't manage to get the best out of three strikers who can all score 20 goals a season at this level then he'll be just as culpable as anyone if we don't go up.

He is getting the best out of them.

Do you seriously think that McCormack is going to score 20 goals as an out and out number 9 or playing wide in Adomah's role?

We play 433.  The only one of the 3 who is suited to that is Kodjia and that is only if he is played wide left.

[Rudy Can't Fail]

We've got three strikers who scored 20 goals a season last time they were at this level. We are not short of goal scorers!

Agreed yet we've managed 2 more than bottom placed Rotherham. Maybe we're spoiled for choice? As I've mentioned after every game, I'm still struggling to see what we're trying to do in attack. I hope it's not the RDM approach - get the ball to them and let them sort it out. It never worked for him and it's not working now, assuming that's Bruce's plan.

[Ad@m]

Everyone keeps telling me Steve Bruce is just the sort of experienced manager we need. If he can't manage to get the best out of three strikers who can all score 20 goals a season at this level then he'll be just as culpable as anyone if we don't go up.

He is getting the best out of them.

Do you seriously think that McCormack is going to score 20 goals as an out and out number 9 or playing wide in Adomah's role?

We play 433.  The only one of the 3 who is suited to that is Kodjia and that is only if he is played wide left.

I don't think enforcing a system on a group of players which doesn't play to their strengths is "getting the most out of them".

I'm lothe to criticise Bruce too much as he's giving us results for the first time in most of a decade but Kodja, McCormick, Gestede and Ayew would get in to pretty much every team in the division and yet we've scored 2 more goals than Rotherham. It's not good enough and if we don't make the playoffs is going to be the lack of goals that does for us.

[Old Kodjia]

Everyone keeps telling me Steve Bruce is just the sort of experienced manager we need. If he can't manage to get the best out of three strikers who can all score 20 goals a season at this level then he'll be just as culpable as anyone if we don't go up.

He is getting the best out of them.

Do you seriously think that McCormack is going to score 20 goals as an out and out number 9 or playing wide in Adomah's role?

We play 433.  The only one of the 3 who is suited to that is Kodjia and that is only if he is played wide left.

I don't think enforcing a system on a group of players which doesn't play to their strengths is "getting the most out of them".

I'm lothe to criticise Bruce too much as he's giving us results for the first time in most of a decade but Kodja, McCormick, Gestede and Ayew would get in to pretty much every team in the division and yet we've scored 2 more goals than Rotherham. It's not good enough and if we don't make the playoffs is going to be the lack of goals that does for us.

I agree that if we don't make the play offs, it will be through lack of goals.

That is why I said that we need an out and out number 9.

Players should fit into a managers system, not the other way round.  If they can't then a manager will want to consider bringing in his own players.  That is the way it works.

Remember we had all these strikers playing for the first 11 games and we were hovering just above the relegation zone.

People seem to think that a creative midfielder is going to be the answer.  It isn't.  We already have a creative midfielder in Grealish.  We need someone alongside Jedinak.

[Bestmate]

Everyone keeps telling me Steve Bruce is just the sort of experienced manager we need. If he can't manage to get the best out of three strikers who can all score 20 goals a season at this level then he'll be just as culpable as anyone if we don't go up.

He is getting the best out of them.

Do you seriously think that McCormack is going to score 20 goals as an out and out number 9 or playing wide in Adomah's role?

We play 433.  The only one of the 3 who is suited to that is Kodjia and that is only if he is played wide left.

I don't think enforcing a system on a group of players which doesn't play to their strengths is "getting the most out of them".

I'm lothe to criticise Bruce too much as he's giving us results for the first time in most of a decade but Kodja, McCormick, Gestede and Ayew would get in to pretty much every team in the division and yet we've scored 2 more goals than Rotherham. It's not good enough and if we don't make the playoffs is going to be the lack of goals that does for us.

Taking a leaf from another thread, i still say a driving force through the middlle of the midfield would help a lot. We are passing the ball to the wingers from very deep positions giving them a lot to do. Somebody like the snake would have ran with the ball through the middle and then passed in much more penetrative areas for the wide players to attack.

[Hillbilly]

Could basically have two attacking teams. One is the elastic Ayew, Grealish, Kodjia approach and if that's not working drag 'em off and put on the classic winger plus two in the middle  Gestede, Adomah, McCormick. Or vice versa. Mix it up a bit, job done.

[footyskillz]

Okay what are the  stats saying now. 
Automatic is unlikely but I think  results between now and end of January Will sort out the wanted from the wantnons