bovril Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 In terms of set pieces, the priority would be finding a goalkeeper that can command his area, not changing forwards. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fox92 Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 Needs to be changed at the minute but Okozaki isn't a bad player. His ability to win the ball back is exceptional, a few of our goals this season have started with Okozaki winning the ball back. He looks a different player to what he did in the first few games though. If I think back to the Sunderland and West Ham games, Okozaki was constantly putting pressure on every opposition player. Mahrez's goal at West Ham came from Okozaki closing the goalkeeper down if I recall correctly. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Countryfox Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 Shinji the new Nugent for idiots on this forum to make their new hate figure. A guy by the way who has played in the German Bundesliga at a top side and a Japanese International with 47 International goals? He suits our style of play, works hard, tackles and upsets upposing defenders he is just our type of player. Both him and Schlupp looked out of sorts on Saturday. Fonte for Southampton is blaming fatigue for all their Internationals playing in the week. I would Argue both Schlupp and Okazaki travelled further distances then the majority of theirs and ours? It's totally refreshing we have now a manager who recognises when we have to change things in a game and if that is at half time so be it. That would not have been done by the previous management who would have waited to at least the 69th minute, before changing and it would have been like for like. The subs on Saturday changed the game in our favour and it was the right call. For those calling for Ulloa or Kramaric to start. So you would like our style of play to change? When Ulloa is on the pitch we hit it long and high a bit like when Howard was here. Kramaric I just don't get the love in? He is poor and sorry I don't rate the guy neither do the new regime I believe he will be sold in January. We should all be grateful for the great club and team we are building. I think we are going places this season. Be grateful for what you have sit back, strap in, and enjoy the ride. Spot on ... lets just get some cover for Jamie and Shinji. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fox92 Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 Kramaric doesn't seem to suit our style, he's a lot slower than Okazaki. We're a very fast counter attacking side. Same with Ulloa, although I do rate Ulloa and I think he's very good with the ball at his feet (we don't always have to launch the ball up in the air for him). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ttfn Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 If/when Vardy finally runs out of puff he's perfectly capable of doing that high press role as well by the looks of it. Great option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Number 6 Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 The additional big man defending set pieces very underrated especially in light of the continually exposed defensive weaknesses at them. And Ulloa usually occupies the space where Kanté was beaten by Fonte at the weekend. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Doctor Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 In terms of set pieces, the priority would be finding a goalkeeper that can command his area, not changing forwards. Given how controlling Kasper was when he first arrived, I dare say that's a coaching or tactical issue rather than something signing a new keeper will solve. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CosbehFox Posted 19 October 2015 Share Posted 19 October 2015 If/when Vardy finally runs out of puff he's perfectly capable of doing that high press role as well by the looks of it. Great option. That's what he did at Mainz. He's admitted himself he's getting to grips with his new role. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest MattP Posted 20 October 2015 Share Posted 20 October 2015 Huge dilemma this, him and Vardy clearly have worked very well at times but you can't really keep your place in the team if you have to be draged off at half time every other match. I'd still go with him next week I think but it's purely on the form of his partner rather than him. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted 20 October 2015 Share Posted 20 October 2015 In terms of set pieces, the priority would be finding a goalkeeper that can command his area, not changing forwards. I agree with that. There's nothing we can do really until Jan. I hope Don Claudio realises Kasper isnt the answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ric Flair Posted 20 October 2015 Share Posted 20 October 2015 I think his contribution so far has been brilliant and I don't really understand some of the criticism. He reminds me of Vardy when he first arrived only, actually, better. Stop looking at chances he creates directly or goals he scores and start watching how many moves he starts by winning the ball and harassing midfielders. People banged on about Nugent's contribution when we didn't have the ball but actually he was fairly shit, he chased a little but he rarely won it back. Okazaki doesn't have the pace and creativity of Dyer and Mahrez but that's not why he's there. He's like having another ball winning midfielder on the park only in a more advanced position. That's why he's starting and he's pretty damn good at it. He throws himself at much bigger people and often comes out with the ball. I couldn't disagree with you more, he's been dragged in so many matches at half time and rightly so. These aren't necessarily tactical decisions either, it's just the lad hasn't been in the game and we can't afford to carry a player. I think he'll eventually adapt to the PL as he seems to have the right attributes but it's not happening for him currently. I don't believe he should continue to get in just because we're 5th in the league. I am still concerned that at some point we will lose the ability to salvage something out of games we go a few goals down in and we must therefore be selecting a team of players who can hit the ground running at the start of matches and try and take the lead and see it out. Defensively we are suspect and that puts huge pressure on our attack to score more goals which right now is not an issue but we are more likely to find trouble scoring against stronger teams than we are at suddenly becoming defensively tight. Therefore I think we need to replace Okazaki with Mahrez and have Dyer out wide with Albrighton or Schlupp. Okazaki as an impact player could actually unlock some confidence and lead to him becoming more influential for us. I think he'll finish the season very strongly but right now I don't see why he should be in the team if based on merit and performances. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HitchinFox Posted 20 October 2015 Share Posted 20 October 2015 Well, Shinji won't win the Ballon d'Or this year. After making it to the 59-man long list, he's now been axed from the 23-man shortlist. Thankfully, so have QPR's Massimo Luongo and Bournemouth's Christian Atsu. http://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/0/football/34578624 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Daisy Posted 20 October 2015 Share Posted 20 October 2015 I love Okazaki~ Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wymsey Posted 20 October 2015 Share Posted 20 October 2015 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
5waller5 Posted 21 October 2015 Share Posted 21 October 2015 I think he adds to the team even if he does only play 45 minutes each week ...... He almost is there to soften up the opposition defence. With Vardy run them ragged for 45 minutes,not give them a second on the ball, and at half time having achieved his objective of knackering the opposition we bring on another striker ..... I used to love this tactic at lower levels - just swap the front two at 60 minutes - it's a different variation of it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bert Posted 21 October 2015 Share Posted 21 October 2015 I couldn't disagree with you more, he's been dragged in so many matches at half time and rightly so. These aren't necessarily tactical decisions either, it's just the lad hasn't been in the game and we can't afford to carry a player. I think he'll eventually adapt to the PL as he seems to have the right attributes but it's not happening for him currently. I don't believe he should continue to get in just because we're 5th in the league. I am still concerned that at some point we will lose the ability to salvage something out of games we go a few goals down in and we must therefore be selecting a team of players who can hit the ground running at the start of matches and try and take the lead and see it out. Defensively we are suspect and that puts huge pressure on our attack to score more goals which right now is not an issue but we are more likely to find trouble scoring against stronger teams than we are at suddenly becoming defensively tight. Therefore I think we need to replace Okazaki with Mahrez and have Dyer out wide with Albrighton or Schlupp. Okazaki as an impact player could actually unlock some confidence and lead to him becoming more influential for us. I think he'll finish the season very strongly but right now I don't see why he should be in the team if based on merit and performances. Finners in Japenese love in shocker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DEMANN Posted 21 October 2015 Share Posted 21 October 2015 I think he adds to the team even if he does only play 45 minutes each week ...... He almost is there to soften up the opposition defence. With Vardy run them ragged for 45 minutes,not give them a second on the ball, and at half time having achieved his objective of knackering the opposition we bring on another striker ..... I used to love this tactic at lower levels - just swap the front two at 60 minutes - it's a different variation of it.Why don't they replace Vardy at half-time then? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benpicko Posted 21 October 2015 Share Posted 21 October 2015 I thought he looked good to begin with but at the moment I'd rather have Nugent tbh, faster and better at linking the midfield and defence Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Swiper Posted 22 October 2015 Share Posted 22 October 2015 I thought he looked good to begin with but at the moment I'd rather have Nugent tbh, faster and better at linking the midfield and defence And cheaper. That money could have been used on a quality RB. That said, I'm confident Okazaki will find his way at some point. But if we go 2 strikers against Palace, the second needs to be Ulloa. Give Okazaki a run against Hull and see if he can start to find his shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inckley fox Posted 22 October 2015 Share Posted 22 October 2015 It's interesting to see some people equating criticism of Okazaki with a wider failure to understand the role of a 'number ten' striker. With Nugent, I think criticisms were largely because his chance conversion rate wasn't what it needed to be, especially at PL level. I was disappointed to see him leave because I felt he had a good understanding with Vardy and we often looked better with him in the side but, on the other hand, I think he's probably held in the right esteem for a guy who hit a goal every 2.5 games in the second tier, and plenty of assists, but couldn't come close to replicating that at a higher level. And it's not as if City fans have a historical failure to appreciate strikers who don't score all that many goals. In the case of Okazaki, you have to be patient because his attributes - which don't include pace or the physical strength to win many 50-50s - seem to indicate that his real threat is in and around the box, and we've not seen much of him there. But I don't buy the idea that by simply running around he does a job through upping the tempo (any athlete could do that), or that he's an effective ball-winner (yes, he does occasionally win the ball, but when he closes players down he rarely puts them under any real pressure, or gets close enough to make a challenge). The logical conclusion isn't that he's bringing something only a small number of people can begin to appreciate to our game (after all, people argued the same about all sorts of players who didn't appear to offer a lot, be it Konchesky, De Laet, King or Nugent, and they were all dropped), but rather that we're asking a good player to accustom himself to a new role, and because he's a good player we want to give him ample opportunity to do this. That players do things which fans don't always appreciate - through their communicative skills, movement etc. - I don't doubt, but we have to be careful not to look too hard for things which aren't there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MPH Posted 22 October 2015 Share Posted 22 October 2015 He's our modern day Heskey.. Unsung hero maybe but there comes a time when you want a few more goals from your striker... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wymsey Posted 22 October 2015 Share Posted 22 October 2015 He needs slip-proof boots. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bayfox Posted 22 October 2015 Share Posted 22 October 2015 He's our modern day Heskey.. Unsung hero maybe but there comes a time when you want a few more goals from your striker... Get why you would make a comparison. But don't see many similarities. Heskey didn't work anywhere near as hard but when the ball went up to him or was played in the channel he went and chased it. Okazaki works more but is no where near as powerful and as yet has not offered much in terms of goals or assists. I understand why you may consider him unsung but for me I still am yet to see what he offers other than work rate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
justfoxes Posted 22 October 2015 Share Posted 22 October 2015 He wears his heart on his sleeve gives 150% each game give him a bit more time and he will score more goals some have said use him as an impact sub 60 min into games when defenders start to tire maybe that's his role???? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nick Posted 22 October 2015 Share Posted 22 October 2015 I think his contribution so far has been brilliant and I don't really understand some of the criticism. He reminds me of Vardy when he first arrived only, actually, better. Stop looking at chances he creates directly or goals he scores and start watching how many moves he starts by winning the ball and harassing midfielders. People banged on about Nugent's contribution when we didn't have the ball but actually he was fairly shit, he chased a little but he rarely won it back. Okazaki doesn't have the pace and creativity of Dyer and Mahrez but that's not why he's there. He's like having another ball winning midfielder on the park only in a more advanced position. That's why he's starting and he's pretty damn good at it. He throws himself at much bigger people and often comes out with the ball. This, all day long. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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