Scrap Adebola

[Red Robin]

What a load of rubbish. I saw on the opening day at Blackpool Dele set up two absolutely golden chances for Maynard who inexplicably missed both.

Michael Mifsud didn't seem to have too many problems scoring alongside Dele either.

He's a very good Championship target man and contrary to what some have said has a very good touch and understanding of the game.

The problem on Tuesday night was that Maynard wasn't playing close enough to him, in fact in the first half he was playing on the left wing! They need to play closer together and develop their understanding with each other.

Absolutely no reason to drop Dele and I'd persist with his pairing with Maynard for Saturday's game.

well said that man,maynard needs to get closer to Dele and play of him.

Dele slow your haveing a laugh the guy has plenty pf pace.

Been saying for a while Maynard has to justify his price tag to date he has come no where near it.

[Rednready]

GJ has identified our problem.

On the main site he is quoted as saying our problem is we are not creating enough chances..........?

This observation has been made by many on this forum for 2 seasons. In that time we have tried unending striker formations and strikers. As another poster mentioned we have recently been playing too narrow to cover a fragile center midfield. The same area of concern identified by GJ. We should also not be a club who cannot exist without Elliot.

All the Aebola's, Brookers, Trundles and Maynards don't count for much if as GJ says, we are not creating chances.

He made that " ineffective in the final third "comment enough times last season to realise it was a problem area. He signed Carle, and I wont go on about that. Last season LJ scored 1 goal in 41 starts, none this season and thats with the advantage of all the deadball free kick opportunities. Skuse was barely used last season and scoring from his usual field possession is unlikely.

Scrap Adebola ? More like we should have signed a center midfielder who actually creates and adds a few goals. Toughen the center midfield and allow our wingers to operate along the chalk where they belong.

[cidercity1987]

Adebola has been our best player this season imo, especially away where his value to the team is clear to see. It isn't his fault our defenders choose to lump it up to him at every opportunity.

[redrebel]

Hes style is making us play long ball football which is having a knock on affect with Maynard and the rest of the team.

Drop him and put in Brooker, if things don't work out then by all means put dele back in all I'm saying is we need to try something different, beacause the Adebola/Maynard partnership isnt working.

Total rubbish.Just read what you have said and maybe see how stupid it is.Adebola is selected by Gary Johnson and he picks the other 10 players and they play how he wants them to.But no according to you it is Adebola being selected that determines how we play.I wonder what Gary Johnson and Keith Millen do all week and on matchdays.

[rockin-robin]

Its an interesting debate the Adebola one.

For anyone to say that the reason we've played a lot more route one football is down to purely Adebola is a fool. Having said that, City did play a lot better football before Adebola arrived last season.

HOWEVER, if you recall, City played their best football last season in a 4-4-1-1 formation with Noble playing behind a high front man. We didnt have as an abudance of strikers so were in essence forced to play this way. Also, with LJ playing the way he does (picking the ball up from the defence), we were actually playing a 4-1-3-1-1 formation or a kind of triangle midfield. This enabled us to retain the ball better but didnt lend itself to lots of goals being scored. We were therefore able to build play through the middle, play it to feet of the front man who could lay the ball off and open it up to wide areas for Mcindoe and Sproule.

With a 4-4-2 that we are playing at the moment, I don't believe it allows City to play such passing football as options are less available and if the play breaks down in the middle of the park, there is less cover for the defence. As a result of this, the defence are less inclined to keeping passing the ball through the middle and instead look immediately to the frontmen. This is therefore not an Adebola or Maynards fault. Its a fault with our midfield not be technically good enough to keep the ball moving without an obvious target to pass to.

[Guest ashtonyate]

Its an interesting debate the Adebola one.

For anyone to say that the reason we've played a lot more route one football is down to purely Adebola is a fool. Having said that, City did play a lot better football before Adebola arrived last season.

HOWEVER, if you recall, City played their best football last season in a 4-4-1-1 formation with Noble playing behind a high front man. We didnt have as an abudance of strikers so were in essence forced to play this way. Also, with LJ playing the way he does (picking the ball up from the defence), we were actually playing a 4-1-3-1-1 formation or a kind of triangle midfield. This enabled us to retain the ball better but didnt lend itself to lots of goals being scored. We were therefore able to build play through the middle, play it to feet of the front man who could lay the ball off and open it up to wide areas for Mcindoe and Sproule.

With a 4-4-2 that we are playing at the moment, I don't believe it allows City to play such passing football as options are less available and if the play breaks down in the middle of the park, there is less cover for the defence. As a result of this, the defence are less inclined to keeping passing the ball through the middle and instead look immediately to the frontmen. This is therefore not an Adebola or Maynards fault. Its a fault with our midfield not be technically good enough to keep the ball moving without an obvious target to pass to.

It was only after Adebola came we looked like scoring it was his goals that got us in the play offs and as we had a poor goal difference for most of the season we may had looked better going forward it did not show on the score sheet?

[aller g]

Dele runs his arse off for 90 mins.

he literally ruins the oppositions defence, giving people like maynard a better chance to have a crack on goal.

one thing you cannot say is that he doesnt give 100%(except from wembley).

sure, you could drop him, and put in brooker who will do the same type of job, but he wont put in the same amount of effort.

and as for the long ball game we've adapted to playing, it wouldnt change.

confidence is the reason we're not passing the ball like we used too.

[Robbored]

Its an interesting debate the Adebola one.

For anyone to say that the reason we've played a lot more route one football is down to purely Adebola is a fool. Having said that, City did play a lot better football before Adebola arrived last season.

HOWEVER, if you recall, City played their best football last season in a 4-4-1-1 formation with Noble playing behind a high front man. We didnt have as an abudance of strikers so were in essence forced to play this way. Also, with LJ playing the way he does (picking the ball up from the defence), we were actually playing a 4-1-3-1-1 formation or a kind of triangle midfield. This enabled us to retain the ball better but didnt lend itself to lots of goals being scored. We were therefore able to build play through the middle, play it to feet of the front man who could lay the ball off and open it up to wide areas for Mcindoe and Sproule.

With a 4-4-2 that we are playing at the moment, I don't believe it allows City to play such passing football as options are less available and if the play breaks down in the middle of the park, there is less cover for the defence. As a result of this, the defence are less inclined to keeping passing the ball through the middle and instead look immediately to the frontmen. This is therefore not an Adebola or Maynards fault. Its a fault with our midfield not be technically good enough to keep the ball moving without an obvious target to pass to.

I agree that Noble should at least get a start. He is the most creative footballer at the club imo.

As for the long ball - City players do tend to resort to it when they become frustrated, usually when up against better opposition as we saw on Tuesday night. Its something that personally I hate to see. To me it smacks of ineptitude and if I were the opposition manager I'd be delighted to see the other team resort to it.

The other thing to recognise about the long ball is that sometimes players just want to get rid of the ball as the fear of failure is so great.Certainly when playing at AG the expectation from the fans is far greater than when away from home. That might be why we see the long ball more at AG.The pressure on the players is far greater.

Having a target man doesn't help imo. If City had two diminutive strikers then the rest of the team would be forced into playing in a more attractive fashion. Thats not a personal swipe at Adebola - he plays to his strengths and does it well. Its not his fault that his team mates lump balls upto him. Its upto Johnson and his staff to force the message accros to the players that the lump up the pitch is small percentage option. He has said in the press this week that the players will be working on better movement this week in training - not before time.

Hopefully the players will show what the've learnt against Donny on Saturday.

[rockin-robin]

I agree that Noble should at least get a start. He is the most creative footballer at the club imo.

As for the long ball - City players do tend to resort to it when they become frustrated, usually when up against better opposition as we saw on Tuesday night. Its something that personally I hate to see. To me it smacks of ineptitude and if I were the opposition manager I'd be delighted to see the other team resort to it.

The other thing to recognise about the long ball is that sometimes players just want to get rid of the ball as the fear of failure is so great.Certainly when playing at AG the expectation from the fans is far greater than when away from home. That might be why we see the long ball more at AG.The pressure on the players is far greater.

Having a target man doesn't help imo. If City had two diminutive strikers then the rest of the team would be forced into playing in a more attractive fashion. Thats not a personal swipe at Adebola - he plays to his strengths and does it well. Its not his fault that his team mates lump balls upto him. Its upto Johnson and his staff to force the message accros to the players that the lump up the pitch is small percentage option. He has said in the press this week that the players will be working on better movement this week in training - not before time.

Hopefully the players will show what the've learnt against Donny on Saturday.

Spot on. I think the City players are more aware that any mistake or pass that goes wayward is more likely to get punished so resort to just clearing the ball.

Probably just a confidence thing, because we know City CAN do it. I'm hoping that after City get their first win at home, we will see a more composed City team on the ball.

[Hicksy-BCFC]

What a load of rubbish. I saw on the opening day at Blackpool Dele set up two absolutely golden chances for Maynard who inexplicably missed both.

Come on mate be fair. That first chance wasn't "set up", I was right in line with it. Dele went up in the air, it hit his back and fell for Maynard.

Maynard should have done better than strike it at the keeper I grant you.

[Redhyde]

I don't think our style has changed with Dele, it's just the long ball is effective more. We were complaining about them whacking it up to Trundle/Showunmi/Byfield at the start of last season. Without Dele the long ball option wouldn't be as effective. Switching Brooker in were he fit.. would just mean we'd lose it more as he's not as mobile and has less control IMO.

[Bris Red]

I don't think our style has changed with Dele, it's just the long ball is effective more. We were complaining about them whacking it up to Trundle/Showunmi/Byfield at the start of last season. Without Dele the long ball option wouldn't be as effective. Switching Brooker in were he fit.. would just mean we'd lose it more as he's not as mobile and has less control IMO.

What so Adebola is more mobile then Brooker?

Give me a break

[redrebel]

What so Adebola is more mobile then Brooker?

Give me a break

Nearly as stupid a comment as saying choosing Adebola makes everyone play a long ball game.

[Bris Red]

Nearly as stupid a comment as saying choosing Adebola makes everyone play a long ball game.

I didnt say it MAKES people play a long ball game i said when Adebola plays the temptation is too great for some players and they just choose the easy option and pump it long to him.

IMO if we palyed Brooker we would see a mixture of long balls and balls in to his feet unlike when you play Adebola you have no chance but to play it long beacuse his touch is so bad playing it to his feet would just mean he would get tackled, as i have seen on countless occassions when the ball is knocked into Adebola he hasnt got the basic foot work skills to keep the ball under control.

[redrebel]

I didnt say it MAKES people play a long ball game i said when Adebola plays the temptation is too great for some players and they just choose the easy option and pump it long to him.

IMO if we palyed Brooker we would see a mixture of long balls and balls in to his feet unlike when you play Adebola you have no chance but to play it long beacuse his touch is so bad playing it to his feet would just mean he would get tackled, as i have seen on countless occassions when the ball is knocked into Adebola he hasnt got the basic foot work skills to keep the ball under control.

And where exactly does Gary Johnson fit in to all this.It is his job to sort out players who constantly lump long balls upfield.This can happen with or witnout Adebola.In my opinion you are making Adebola a scapegoat for other players lack of quality and vision in selecting their pass.He does not deserve this and in my opinion played a big part min getting us to Wembly.

Oh and by the way did you go to Coventry away this season because he caused havoc to Coventry and was key to our win.Good job we didn't scrap before that game.

[sodburyred]

What so Adebola is more mobile then Brooker?

Give me a break

Am I the only one who doesnt think Brookers amazing? Fair play hes a good striker. But Bola is alot stronger, bigger and better in the air! Brooker is better with it to his feet but that isnt going to happen the way we're playing at present! If you want the ball played on the floor Trundle would be the choice because the hoof ballers in our team would soon realise there long balls are coming strate back!

[bristolcitysweden]

Its an interesting debate the Adebola one.

For anyone to say that the reason we've played a lot more route one football is down to purely Adebola is a fool. Having said that, City did play a lot better football before Adebola arrived last season.

HOWEVER, if you recall, City played their best football last season in a 4-4-1-1 formation with Noble playing behind a high front man. We didnt have as an abudance of strikers so were in essence forced to play this way. Also, with LJ playing the way he does (picking the ball up from the defence), we were actually playing a 4-1-3-1-1 formation or a kind of triangle midfield. This enabled us to retain the ball better but didnt lend itself to lots of goals being scored. We were therefore able to build play through the middle, play it to feet of the front man who could lay the ball off and open it up to wide areas for Mcindoe and Sproule.

With a 4-4-2 that we are playing at the moment, I don't believe it allows City to play such passing football as options are less available and if the play breaks down in the middle of the park, there is less cover for the defence. As a result of this, the defence are less inclined to keeping passing the ball through the middle and instead look immediately to the frontmen. This is therefore not an Adebola or Maynards fault. Its a fault with our midfield not be technically good enough to keep the ball moving without an obvious target to pass to.

The best football we have played under Johnson was in his first season when Russel and Noble runned the park. Really attractive football. Why can't Noble never ever get fit? Him and Elliot in central midfield and the Gate will swing again. Until Noble is fit, play McIndoe in central midfield.

[Bris Red]

Am I the only one who doesnt think Brookers amazing? Fair play hes a good striker. But Bola is alot stronger, bigger and better in the air! Brooker is better with it to his feet but that isnt going to happen the way we're playing at present! If you want the ball played on the floor Trundle would be the choice because the hoof ballers in our team would soon realise there long balls are coming strate back!

What is peoples obssesion with Adebolas strength and his ability to head, i love Deles work rate and IMO in terms of work rate he is the best in the team. But you need more than just strength a good head and work rate, IMO Brooker has all bolas qualities and more, Brooker has a very powerful shoot a good head and more importantly 9 times out of ten his first touch is good, which is something i cannont say about Dele.

The point I'm trying to make is if we play a fully fit Brooker we would get everything Dele can give us and also that bit extra. When Brooker is on song he can cause just as many problems as Dele, i also think Brooker could bring Maynard more into the game. For arguments sake just picture Gavin williams with the ball running in to the oppostion half, lets say he has no clear options ahead of him, then Brooker comes short (something Dele dosnt have the ability to do) and then Brooker holds the ball up and turns his man which when fit Brooker is one of the best in the divison at doing. Then threads a ball to Maynard, this would be a perfect scenarion for Maynard and any striker.

This is why i think we should try Brooker, its not that i don't rate Deles work rate its that i think we could gain so much more if we played Brooks.

[Jordan Tansley]

I'm sorry but in your original post you said mr adebola lacked movement :noexpression: are you kidding me? if you actually watch him, you'd see him make brilliant little runs that not only spread the defence wide, but also create spaces for the midfield and nicky maynard to work in. and in the box the guy is amazing at making runs, i always watch him from set peices and it amazes me how he can lose his marker with such ease, people around me have moaned about him dropping too deep int he box for corners... ever heard of attacking the ball?

dele is not a target man, he never wants to be and has always prefered the ball at his feet, you say he lacks pace, yet he is up there with the quickest in our team, and he is probably the most powerful dribbler in the division. the long ball is played by every team in england, without exception! manchester united have rio ferdinand who is probably the best long ball passing defender in the world! and he whacks it long more than 10 times a game on his own. Even arsenal play long ball with adebayor up front. liverpool play it long to torres and before that crouch and chelsea do the same with drogba and for some reason anelka :noexpression:

if we didnt have adebola people like yourself would be complaining about the lack of an outlet, for defenders to turn to when in trouble! we are priviliged to have dele, he is a brilliant player and like peter crouch under rated as a footballer. put simply he played his best game for us that ive seen against seffield united and we played scarcily any high balls, he controlled the game with his hold up play, clever flicks, powerful running and impressive movement. this season he was the reason we beat coventry city and he scored our goal against QPR. thus proving what an impressive player he is for us.

age means nothing, he still has all teh attributes to score goals at this level, hence why he is doing so for us this season! brooker is injury prone and lacks pace and movement! the reasons you dislike dele! he lacks height so we don't play high balls to him, we still play long balls! but they don't go as high! but you see the ball leave the floor and forget that its a legitimate tactic don't you?

surely your used to it by now as well? we have done this since sir gary took over! he loves his big black target man! guy madjo/ mark mccaammon/ bas savage/ enoch showumni/ dele / john akinde? its just the way GJ plays, its not like it hasnt been successful, don't believe our own hype when they say we are a great footballing side, we are good, but not great we have the ability to mix it up, we have tough tacklers in midfiled and we have big brutes that bully defenders/ attackers. we also have good wingers and some exceptionally gifted footballers in noble, trundle and gavin williams so there is where our great reputation comes from!

city play an exciting brand of football, its nowhere near as exciting as this weeks opponents doncastor, nor is it arsenal or manchester united, but its exciting none the less and dele is a big part of that.

[rossjonesuk]

I'm sorry but in your original post you said mr adebola lacked movement :noexpression: are you kidding me? if you actually watch him, you'd see him make brilliant little runs that not only spread the defence wide, but also create spaces for the midfield and nicky maynard to work in. and in the box the guy is amazing at making runs, i always watch him from set peices and it amazes me how he can lose his marker with such ease, people around me have moaned about him dropping too deep int he box for corners... ever heard of attacking the ball?

dele is not a target man, he never wants to be and has always prefered the ball at his feet, you say he lacks pace, yet he is up there with the quickest in our team, and he is probably the most powerful dribbler in the division. the long ball is played by every team in england, without exception! manchester united have rio ferdinand who is probably the best long ball passing defender in the world! and he whacks it long more than 10 times a game on his own. Even arsenal play long ball with adebayor up front. liverpool play it long to torres and before that crouch and chelsea do the same with drogba and for some reason anelka :noexpression:

if we didnt have adebola people like yourself would be complaining about the lack of an outlet, for defenders to turn to when in trouble! we are priviliged to have dele, he is a brilliant player and like peter crouch under rated as a footballer. put simply he played his best game for us that ive seen against seffield united and we played scarcily any high balls, he controlled the game with his hold up play, clever flicks, powerful running and impressive movement. this season he was the reason we beat coventry city and he scored our goal against QPR. thus proving what an impressive player he is for us.

age means nothing, he still has all teh attributes to score goals at this level, hence why he is doing so for us this season! brooker is injury prone and lacks pace and movement! the reasons you dislike dele! he lacks height so we don't play high balls to him, we still play long balls! but they don't go as high! but you see the ball leave the floor and forget that its a legitimate tactic don't you?

surely your used to it by now as well? we have done this since sir gary took over! he loves his big black target man! guy madjo/ mark mccaammon/ bas savage/ enoch showumni/ dele / john akinde? its just the way GJ plays, its not like it hasnt been successful, don't believe our own hype when they say we are a great footballing side, we are good, but not great we have the ability to mix it up, we have tough tacklers in midfiled and we have big brutes that bully defenders/ attackers. we also have good wingers and some exceptionally gifted footballers in noble, trundle and gavin williams so there is where our great reputation comes from!

city play an exciting brand of football, its nowhere near as exciting as this weeks opponents doncastor, nor is it arsenal or manchester united, but its exciting none the less and dele is a big part of that.

I think you have a good summary of the team and the way GJ likes to play, but I cant see how any can value Adebola over Brooks.

You say Brooks has no movement or pace, but at least when the ball comes near him it sticks to him - plus he is better at making space for himself than Adebola. He can also spank them in from anywhere in or around the box!!

GJ un-doubtedly likes big front men who can hold up the ball, and in your own words Adebola cant hold it up... None of the "Big Target-Men" have worked out yet and most of the names you've given (Madjo,Mcammon,Savage,Showumni,Dele) have moved on without any huge impact. I am yet to see a 'big black target man' work out since Akinbiyi left!!!

Where we lacked last season, and look like doing so this season, is a striker who can get even 15 goals a season yet alone 20/25!! Play Brooker regularly and see if he works better with Maynard?? The Adebola/Maynard has had 7 games together, over 10 hours of football, and produced just 3 goals.... none of which were assisted by the other.

Brooker's had 1 League Cup start and ZERO League starts - and has 3 goals... making him our top-scorer; rotting on the bench.

The facts don't lie.

[redrebel]

What is peoples obssesion with Adebolas strength and his ability to head, i love Deles work rate and IMO in terms of work rate he is the best in the team. But you need more than just strength a good head and work rate, IMO Brooker has all bolas qualities and more, Brooker has a very powerful shoot a good head and more importantly 9 times out of ten his first touch is good, which is something i cannont say about Dele.

The point I'm trying to make is if we play a fully fit Brooker we would get everything Dele can give us and also that bit extra. When Brooker is on song he can cause just as many problems as Dele, i also think Brooker could bring Maynard more into the game. For arguments sake just picture Gavin williams with the ball running in to the oppostion half, lets say he has no clear options ahead of him, then Brooker comes short (something Dele dosnt have the ability to do) and then Brooker holds the ball up and turns his man which when fit Brooker is one of the best in the divison at doing. Then threads a ball to Maynard, this would be a perfect scenarion for Maynard and any striker.

This is why i think we should try Brooker, its not that i don't rate Deles work rate its that i think we could gain so much more if we played Brooks.

Did you go to Coventry this season because it makes your comments about Adebola look even more senseless.

[Slave to the rhythm]

Scrap Adebola ? More like we should have signed a center midfielder who actually creates and adds a few goals.

We did, but then we sold him to Palace without replacing him.

[GrahamC]

Brooker's had 1 League Cup start and ZERO League starts - and has 3 goals... making him our top-scorer; rotting on the bench.

The facts don't lie.

The facts are this, simply that Brooker is now injured yet again.

Adebola has been GJ's best striker signing, 8 goals in 22 starts at Championship level is at least in the £1m class, not the paltry £250k that we paid.

[rossjonesuk]

The facts are this, simply that Brooker is now injured yet again.

Adebola has been GJ's best striker signing, 8 goals in 22 starts at Championship level is at least in the £1m class, not the paltry £250k that we paid.

It's actually 8 goals in 26 starts = average of less than one every 3 games.

Brooker, (if we exclude his injury season when he had to play despite being unfit), has returned 33 in 71 starts = around one in every 2 games.

If Ade's not a target-man and he's not a goalscorer (take a look at his playing history - he's not bagged a decent return for 10 years)... What does he do?! From where I sit he roughs up the centre-backs a bit, flicks the long ball on every so often, and - not often enough - finds himself in the right place at the right time.

As for £1m player, to take an average £1m striker at an average Championship club, Martin Paterson of Burnley has netted 6 times in 8 starts this season... or Agyemang at QPR, 9 in 17 last season, 1 in 1 this season. A £1m striker at this level has to put the goods on the table and Ade's had enough Championship experience to be producing.

At 250k Adebola has earnt his fee, but no more than that. And at 150k (or whatever Brooks cost) - he's the bigger bargain! I concede he's been injury prone, but I'd rather see Trundle/Maynard given a go than watch another game of Ade's ineffectiveness.

As for GJ's best striker signing, my one and only criticism of GJ is that he doesn't seem to be able to pick strikers... so it's no huge plaudit to have that tag!

[BristolCity4Life84]

No we shouldn`t. He`s scored a solid amount of goals in our league for various clubs. Is the only striker we have that is proven over many years in our league (along with his many years of experience in The Championship, which our other strikers don`t have). Yes he`s 33. But he`s still a valuable player for us. If we lose him, we`re going to be lacking some proven meat at this level up front.

[Consigliere]

i would prefer trundle as well.

[we always believe!]

He was shocking at wembly and i agree scrap him.

[GrahamC]

It's actually 8 goals in 26 starts = average of less than one every 3 games.

Brooker, (if we exclude his injury season when he had to play despite being unfit), has returned 33 in 71 starts = around one in every 2 games.

If Ade's not a target-man and he's not a goalscorer (take a look at his playing history - he's not bagged a decent return for 10 years)... What does he do?! From where I sit he roughs up the centre-backs a bit, flicks the long ball on every so often, and - not often enough - finds himself in the right place at the right time.

As for £1m player, to take an average £1m striker at an average Championship club, Martin Paterson of Burnley has netted 6 times in 8 starts this season... or Agyemang at QPR, 9 in 17 last season, 1 in 1 this season. A £1m striker at this level has to put the goods on the table and Ade's had enough Championship experience to be producing.

At 250k Adebola has earnt his fee, but no more than that. And at 150k (or whatever Brooks cost) - he's the bigger bargain! I concede he's been injury prone, but I'd rather see Trundle/Maynard given a go than watch another game of Ade's ineffectiveness.

As for GJ's best striker signing, my one and only criticism of GJ is that he doesn't seem to be able to pick strikers... so it's no huge plaudit to have that tag!

Rubbish, selective quoting of Brooker's scoring record (why do you think it is reasonable to exclude a season when he didn't score? and 95% of which is at League One level anyway, as opposed to Dele's 10 years plus as a Championship player) plus picking two successful recent signings, (by the way I'd have signed Paterson too, but as Adebola's partner), doesn't make a strong argument.

Loads of signings don't work, Charlton have signed a barrel load of strikers for lots more money than Adebola cost us, for instance and if we're going to be factual he HAS started 22 Championship games plus the 3 play off ones, in which he failed to score, though if you really think Dele's performance at Selhurst Park in the play off semi was that of a £250k player then I'll accept you're a lost cause for debating with.

25 starts then and 8 goals equates to a 15 goal season over 46 games at this level and as a target man (yes, he is one) that's never a £250k player to me.

[Redhyde]

For us, Adebola has played 25+1 sub times and scored 8 goals. 1 in 3 as the target man in a team that isn't creative and doesn't score many for me is producing.

[Jordan Tansley]

I think you have a good summary of the team and the way GJ likes to play, but I cant see how any can value Adebola over Brooks.

You say Brooks has no movement or pace, but at least when the ball comes near him it sticks to him - plus he is better at making space for himself than Adebola. He can also spank them in from anywhere in or around the box!!

GJ un-doubtedly likes big front men who can hold up the ball, and in your own words Adebola cant hold it up... None of the "Big Target-Men" have worked out yet and most of the names you've given (Madjo,Mcammon,Savage,Showumni,Dele) have moved on without any huge impact. I am yet to see a 'big black target man' work out since Akinbiyi left!!!

Where we lacked last season, and look like doing so this season, is a striker who can get even 15 goals a season yet alone 20/25!! Play Brooker regularly and see if he works better with Maynard?? The Adebola/Maynard has had 7 games together, over 10 hours of football, and produced just 3 goals.... none of which were assisted by the other.

Brooker's had 1 League Cup start and ZERO League starts - and has 3 goals... making him our top-scorer; rotting on the bench.

The facts don't lie.

when did i say he can hold it up? i said he controlled the sheffield united game single handidly with his hold up play and strength etc. brooker's touch isnt perfect, and he doesnt bang them in from anywhere, he was an excellent striker at league 1 but due his proneness to breaking down he will never be able to hold a place down in a championship team. dele has more to his game than we get to see because of the occasional poor tactics employed by mr johnson and mr mccombe, dele has more to his game and more to offer to us as a team than brooks, that's my opinion.

dele is probably our most important player after marvin and louis, last season mccindoe might of been up there but this year he has been awful