Jack Grealish’s brilliance being wasted by misfiring strikers

It must be energy-sapping when you see you're flogging a dead horse week after week as chance after chance goes begging.

A lot of these ‘chances' are cutbacks for the likes of Gana and Garner.

Easy to blame the strikers and neither have been great but the issue is we are not playing to their strengths and we're often creating chances for the wrong players.

Beto has been the main culprit.

Nevertheless, Grealish, Ndiaye, Dewsbury-Hall, Garner, Gana, O'Brien, Mykolenko and Röhl never look like scoring either.

When you see Alcaraz and Armstrong play precision passes behind the defenders for Beto to use his speed and strength, you see the potential to score.

On the other hand, he is not good at hold-up play or ball control, so why does Pickford keep lumping long balls up the pitch for him to win and control?

One other point that has been my beef for years is that we constantly look for goals from our Number 9 because we don't buy or develop goalscoring midfield players. Even the likes of Tarkowski are no longer productive from set pieces.

However, as was discussed on Kieran's article, Moyes isn't doing himself any favors with static setups. We need to take some chances in the second half because teams have figured out how to soft double on Jack and get away with it.

We simply don't have enough smartly timed runs with players who are threats around the box. We need to get Ndiaye and Jack in adjacent positions at some point. Long enough so that the opponents have to make an adjustment, then maybe some of our clunky plays would produce opportunities.

All of the three players mentioned above have the ability to beat a man in a confined space.
Is anyone else thinking of this possibility?

Ndiaye has been playing really well on the right; I would start Alcaraz at Number 10 ahead of Dewsbury-Hall, who I thought was very poor against Spurs.

Our real problem is the low block and a lack of pace. What can you do, there was a clamour for youth and we had a threadbare squad. it's going to take years to regularise.

Garner and Gana, despite multiple shooting opportunities created by Jack and Ili, have one apiece. And Tarkowski and Keane aren't finishing set pieces (although Jake did last weekend).

Only Ili is really cashing in consistently.

Ndiaye is a very effective presser so there will be no loss in that regard. Dale (5) makes a good point that we need to get Grealish and Ndiaye linking more.

Why not try something different with maybe Ndiaye up front with Alcaraz supporting him because the system Moyes has been playing isn't working. Let's face it, we have nothing to lose.

Sunderland have started the season well and will be up for it with a passionate crowd behind them but I feel, if we start positively, it's a game we should be getting something out of it. COYB

- low block and lack of pace is a big problem

- Grealish slows things down a bit too much and doesn't suit Beto's game

- we have sterile possession (excellent phrase, Dale) as a result of the lack of pace and movement and crap full-back play

- the strikers are not being provided with bags of chances

It's nice to have Grealish because he's skilful and famous etc but…

Maybe we just needed someone fast and direct rather than someone slow and technical?

I think we'd be more of a goal threat if the three behind Barry were Ndiaye, Alcaraz and Dibling.

Let's have it right: the strikers aren't being teed up with sitters. I'm no fan of Beto but his last two on target got pretty good saves from the keeper. Barry isn't getting any meaningful game time.

Grealish was poor first half against Spurs but had some exceptional dribbling, ball carrying in the second half, that all came to nought as he mostly cuts in-field and the next player does little to nothing with it.

I'd like to see Alcaraz in the middle rather than Dewsbury-Hall because I feel Alcaraz will get more shots of feed balls into the strikers than Dewsbury-Hall, who has been mentioned variously on here, doesn't afford much attacking intent. Alcaraz is all attacking intent.

I think it’s £50m isn’t it but could probably be negotiated down to, say, £35m.

I’m not sure.

We had someone fast and direct, name of Doucoure. If you'd rather have him than Jack, I'm ordering up some testing for you. Involves a cup.

Pete #17, painfully, I believe you may be right about Gana. The league's leading tackler last season is now a distant third in his own club, behind even Ndiaye, and his passing isn't getting any better. I would drop KDH into the spot next to Garner and, as Jon and others have suggested, give Charly the starting job at #10 for a while. He knows how to release Beto through the backline.

For all his ability, Grealish hasn't yet proved to be a big difference maker for us - and probably isn't as effective for us as Ndiaye on the RW.

Might we look better as a side with someone in the style of Schade, Ouattara, Sarr or Semenyo who is more of a wing forward than a wide playmaker? Emphasis "in the style of" - not suggesting we actually buy these players.

It's possibly too early to judge - but you can probably see where I am going with the question.

Whatever the case, Doucoure isn't the right comparison to Grealish - different position and role in the team. There's an interesting comparison with KDH (who gives us more overall) but we can save that for another article...

Its easy to pick holes in players once the results don't go your way. Its worth remembering that last season we had Harrison and Lindstrom on the flanks. He's a massive improvement on that.

It is true we look to have become predictable. The strikers are limited and the defence drops too deep. Its up to Moyes to solve these problems. Nor sure leaving out our best and most impactful player would help.

As for signing him at the end of his loan? Mixed feelings. He's reaching the latter years of his career and it might be more sensible to invest in younger players. But I would love to see him with better players around him. Especially a FB who wasnt afraid of the ball.

The full backs play a more inverted role in Moyes's system.They are not told to overlap.

But if you'd been watching, I think you'd have seen him on the pitch for a few more than 2 matches.

In fact, the senior side has had a total of 11 games in league and cup so far. I won't spoil it for you by telling you how many of those he's been involved in.

In fact, why don't you tell us which of those 11 games he hasn't had any involvement in?

A top quality player. Him and Ndiaye are a class apart and we're lucky to have them.

I‘d beg to differ over Grealish being our best player this season.

I'd say Ndiaye with his three goals in the three wins v Brighton, Wolves and Crystal Palace helping us to 9 points out of the 11 we have gained.

He hasn't been that bad creating chances in a lot of those games with an assist v Liverpool and doing a lot of defensive work as well.

Gana was awesome last season but perhaps is finally fading (could Rohl play there?).

As for Alcaraz, he fades in and out of games, but while he certainly looks best through the middle, I'm not sure he'll turn Beto's form round all that dramatically. Would rather we drop Beto.

Yes, Colman and Baines did overlap, but Moyes seems to have continued as Dyche had in his system , of inverted wingers ,with no overlapping full-back.I agree, overlapping full-backs would help as you suggest.

Dave#30

Nidaye does seem to be more effective.He is new to that position and seems to be putting alot of work into it.

What matters is how well the team is working together. Not how good the individuals in the team are. Right now we seem to be less than the sum of our parts.