The last "stand out" striker we had?

[Lrrr]

7 minutes ago, Spike said:

Reid - 19 goals in his only season as a striker but sold. Also had talents like Brownhill, Eliasson and Bryan in the team. I also don't think teams saw him as a threat as he was new to the position and he hasn't been as effective since as he's been found out. He was very much a part of a much stronger attacking team, not really a stand out but more of a player in a well balanced team. 

Tammy Abraham - never our player, never was going to be. Amazing talent but a loan that didn't cost us and an almost impossible to replicate striker. 

Kodjia - As mentioned before, a bargain at £2.7m and another type of striker we just can't afford in our current situation. 

Wilbraham - great player, great bloke but certainly not a striker that teams feared or that anyone would say was stand out. Scored his big number in League one in a stand out team in a lower league, wouldn't even be considered a threat in the Championship. 

 

My point of this was that even looking at these players who may have scored a fair amount of goals they still weren't players that scared other teams with the exception of Abraham and they are still players of a quality that we couldn't afford now. We have so many people cussing out Wells, Martin and Weimann but realistically who could we have signed this summer that we could afford and would be seen as a genuine threat in the Championship? 

Last season our top goalscorer was Wells, he managed 10 goals. The season prior to that it was Fammy with 12, he was also the top goalscorer the season before that with 13 and it was only one more season prior to this that Bobby scored his 19.

We've not had a prolific goalscorer in 3 seasons and have less talent up front now than we've had in arguably the last 10 years but we also have no signs of getting a prolific scorer. We can't buy one, we don't have the money and we don't seem to have any youngsters of that quality that will become a prolific goalscorer anytime in the next few years. Add to that the fact our midfielders are toothless when coming forward and we've not had a genuine wide threat for a long time and our position makes a lot more sense. 

So my point was that we've not had a stand out striker for a long time, maybe we've had goalscorers but they've scored those goals largely down to a better quality of player around them creating the chances for them. Tammy is the only real talent we've had that Championship teams would have fought for in a very long time and he was a loan, he never was our player.

Anyone who scores ~20 goals in a season is a stand out striker, whether they're in a good team or not. You weren't asking who we could afford now you were asking the last time we had a stand out striker and what they cost at the time. As pointed out we've had plenty given just before that Ashton Gate was described as the place strikers careers go to 'die'. On Bobby what does it matter if he was sold after? That season he was a great threat. You don't think opposition scouts/analysts were paying attention to a guy who was up near the top of the scoring charts?  Get real. Since he's left us he's never been played the same way we used him, at Cardiff Warnock wanted him to play as a 10 despite his record there with us and at Fulham he had to contend with Mitrovic the whole time, he was never going to be number 1 against him. I didn't include Tammy as he was on loan. Kodjia, as you've said was cheap but the market for his situation could have dried up now with work permit rules anyway. How does Wilbraham scoring 21 in league 1 get discarded? We were a league 1 team at the time and he was very much a threat of a striker. Before that and the one I included was Sam Baldock who was top scorer in the league for that season again very much a threat or do you not count the top scorer in a league a threat?

[David Brent]

29 minutes ago, Phileas Fogg said:

I think we really miss Diedhiou. He was great in both boxes and far more naturally athletic than Martin. 

There's no way anyone can genuinely say Diedhiou wouldn't do a better job than Martin in that strange almost wide-targetman role.

A shame how it worked out with him, especially from a financial point of view. Negligent once again really. 

At his best, definitely. At his worst, definitely not.

[RedHienz]

Bas Savage obviously.

[Davefevs]

47 minutes ago, Supersonic Robin said:

IMO the biggest difference is possibly fitness. Diedhiou could play 90 mins Tuesday, Saturday, Tuesday Saturday. Martin can't do that (at least not without very diminished performance levels).

The financial point is a big one for me. I completely get why we didn't offer him a new contract with the wages he was requesting, but the decision not to sell him in January was crazy IMO. Obviously we don't know how much interest there was, but I recall strong rumours about interest from other clubs. Imagine how much difference just £1m (plus 6 months less paying FD's wage) would have made in summer?

Imho he played Sat / Tues / Sat at somewhere well below 100%.  I liked Fam at full-tilt….I don’t think we saw that enough.

[oldstandrobin]

1 hour ago, pongo88 said:

Things have changed drastically regarding signing forwards since I started watching City. In those days it seemed to be easy to pick up a good forward for next to nothing- eg John Galley (£25k), Tom Richie (signed from Bridgend Thistle in Scotland), Paul Cheesley (£30k). Even allowing for inflation, these were cheap signings. There are still good players out their who wouldn’t cost a fortune, it’s just finding them. In other words it’s the scouting system, or lack of it, that’s the problem. Of our current forwards, Chris Martin was probably signed because he was free and seemed to be a safe bet; Nahki Wells was a panic, overpriced, buy and Weimann seems to be more of a midfield player than a forward.  

Pongers, thats why the top clubs do well, we used to when we scoured Scotland hence Gow, Ritchie, Sweeney, etc, seems like the only scout we have now belongs to the local scout troop.

[Major Isewater]

Buying a top goalscorer at our level , with our lack of success and with our finances is nigh on impossible these days.

In the third division we were pretty big fish and could pay the going rate .

Even during our stay in the top flight we were never going to entice a stand out forward to Ashton Gate. It took us an age to get Royle in to replace Cheeseley.

The only way that I can see a top striker being in the team is if we develop one ourselves. We need to do all we can to guide Conway, Pearson , Janneh and company to the highest level.
 

One reason I was disappointed with our recently departed coaching duo. They could have bought in a ‘Tammy ‘ type replacement but didn’t.

When all is said and done we live in a fantasy world at City, caught between being the big fish in the third division and the reality that we aren’t all that interesting for top players in the Second division. We should be pragmatic and develop a team of highly drilled, disciplined players who are difficult to beat in the first instance. We are football snobs at City and look down on clubs like Rotherham, Barnsley etc who accept where they are in the pecking order and cut their cloth accordingly.

 

[RedM]

1 hour ago, Red-Robbo said:

 

And before that is Baldock the last 20+ goals a season man?

Any stattos confirm that?

Leroy Lita, can’t remember what his return was but he got a fair few?

[Red-Robbo]

1 hour ago, RedM said:

Leroy Lita, can’t remember what his return was but he got a fair few?

 

Got 29 in his last season with us. Ignoring Lita's potential was the blindspot that cost Danny Wilson his job.

A fair bit before Baldock though. 

[BTRFTG]

3 hours ago, 054123 said:

Andy Cole.

What blinkered leaders we must have had who couldn’t see how we literally had somebody who could single handed lead us to promotion.

Just invest in the team around him and reap the rewards of Div 1 later.

Prior to that super Bob. Again just lacking a board who truly wanted the club in division 1.

That's not why he came to us. As he himself described he came on loan to keep us up and get a chance to display his talents. Job done he signed on the basis we'd be a stepping stone to greater things and that as soon as a decent offer came for him he'd be off. We and he agreed that. We were lucky to get him when we did.

[054123]

2 hours ago, BTRFTG said:

That's not why he came to us. As he himself described he came on loan to keep us up and get a chance to display his talents. Job done he signed on the basis we'd be a stepping stone to greater things and that as soon as a decent offer came for him he'd be off. We and he agreed that. We were lucky to get him when we did.

Doesn’t mean you couldn’t have tried.

Also sad that we were the stepping stone to a team who were battling relegation and hadn’t really done anything for 20 years.

Always the shitty bridesmaid.

Edited November 3, 2021 by 054123

[Red Cloud]

Steve Brooker for me, shame about his injuries but what a handful he was for defenders

[Dullmoan Tone]

I know it went sour at the end, but in his prime, Nicky Maynard was unstoppable.

It’s easy to forget what a talent he was and imagine what he could have been without injuries- can’t believe many putting Wilbs above him!

[TV Tom]

8 hours ago, 054123 said:

Andy Cole.

What blinkered leaders we must have had who couldn’t see how we literally had somebody who could single handed lead us to promotion.

Just invest in the team around him and reap the rewards of Div 1 later.

Prior to that super Bob. Again just lacking a board who truly wanted the club in division 1.

Do you honestly believe that Cole should of stayed instead of quadrupling his pay and playing in front of 50,000 people with a team on the up?

[Mr Popodopolous]

3 hours ago, Red Cloud said:

Steve Brooker for me, shame about his injuries but what a handful he was for defenders

 

1 hour ago, Dullmoan Tone said:

I know it went sour at the end, but in his prime, Nicky Maynard was unstoppable.

It’s easy to forget what a talent he was and imagine what he could have been without injuries- can’t believe many putting Wilbs above him!

Back in the days when 4-4-2 was more commonplace and you could field genuine strike pairs at this level with less downside risk, imagine a fully fit Maynard and Brooker 2008 onwards...especially with Maynard in 2009 at his best- that would have been a real handful IMO- what might have been eh?

[Slippin cider]

Yep ,Maynard for me ….

[intercity]

9 minutes ago, Mr Popodopolous said:

 

Back in the days when 4-4-2 was more commonplace and you could field genuine strike pairs at this level with less downside risk, imagine a fully fit Maynard and Brooker 2008 onwards...especially with Maynard in 2009 at his best- that would have been a real handful IMO- what might have been eh?

Back then our strikers were labelled 'weapons of mass destruction' by some envious opposition manager, if my memory serves. I think Lita may have been part of that talented group too.

If only we had their sort among the squad now.

[DaveInSA]

Liam Robinson.

Junior Bent.

Thats all.

[054123]

6 minutes ago, harrys said:

Do you honestly believe that Cole should of stayed instead of quadrupling his pay and playing in front of 50,000 people with a team on the up?

Team on the up? 

I think the fact we’re talking about Newcastle reinforces the point. Just to give this context City come up as defacto champions in 89-90 ( the Taylor injury costs us 1st) and we are flying. Joe Jordan leaves (a separate thread in its own right) but still city play great and finish just 1 point outside of the playoffs and 8 points ahead of Newcastle.

Bristol City struggle in 91-92 but finish safe in 17th whilst Newcastle avoid the bottom 3 by just 4 points and finish 20th.

City sign Cole permanently in the summer of 1992 after joining on loan.

If as you say Cole was always allowed to leave for the ‘bigger club’, the fact that Newcastle are the team in 92-93 and not City just reenforces my point about the club never ever being brave enough or believing in themselves 

[sticks 1969]

8 hours ago, 054123 said:

Andy Cole.

What blinkered leaders we must have had who couldn’t see how we literally had somebody who could single handed lead us to promotion.

Just invest in the team around him and reap the rewards of Div 1 later.

Prior to that super Bob. Again just lacking a board who truly wanted the club in division 1.

Cole would ever had stayed here all we were was a stepping stone 

[extonsred]

8 hours ago, David Brent said:

At his best, definitely. At his worst, definitely not.

At least he did have 'best' moments...many more than those we have at the moment put together. 

[TV Tom]

2 hours ago, 054123 said:

Team on the up? 

I think the fact we’re talking about Newcastle reinforces the point. Just to give this context City come up as defacto champions in 89-90 ( the Taylor injury costs us 1st) and we are flying. Joe Jordan leaves (a separate thread in its own right) but still city play great and finish just 1 point outside of the playoffs and 8 points ahead of Newcastle.

Bristol City struggle in 91-92 but finish safe in 17th whilst Newcastle avoid the bottom 3 by just 4 points and finish 20th.

City sign Cole permanently in the summer of 1992 after joining on loan.

If as you say Cole was always allowed to leave for the ‘bigger club’, the fact that Newcastle are the team in 92-93 and not City just reenforces my point about the club never ever being brave enough or believing in themselves 

It’s a no brainier, Newcastle are and were a far far bigger club than city and were never going to be outside of the top flight for long, he quadrupled his salary, ultimately he went on to play for one of the biggest clubs in the world  and won plenty of medals and represented his country. He absolutely made the right decision to leave us and there would of been no way we could of kept him, the massive and unforgivable mistake was not having a sell-on fee.