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Author Topic: Oldham v Swindon pre match chat and matchday thread  (Read 26867 times)
Pericardinho

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« Reply #435 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 17:06:03 »


I may be wrong but i would imagine he is one of the highest goal-scoring teenagers in the country

There’ll be little competition there, as most football league clubs should know better than to have a teenage striker with no professional games under his belt as their primary goal source.

Don’t get me wrong, Simpson will be a good footballer, and will most likely have a career above the level he’s currently at. However, I judge players for how good they are now, irrespective of age. League 2 is a cut throat business, half the players we have now probably won’t be here next year, and when it comes to strikers, you take the best you can find. We aren’t here to develop players for other clubs, we are here to get promoted.

Yes Simpson has 6 goals, but stick Doyle or Yates in this team, they’d probably have double. We are 4th in the league for XG, and average 60-70% possession in most games. We are a strikers dream when we play like we did yesterday and if we had a better striker, I genuinely think we’d walk this league.
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Kinky Tom
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« Reply #436 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 17:28:52 »

You're a bundle of fun aren't you.

Sometimes a team's main forward isn't supposed to be their primary source of goals, Liverpool have won a PL & CL with such a forward.
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Crozzer

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« Reply #437 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 17:38:12 »

Considering the circumstances for the individual and club Simpson has done brilliantly. From fans in the circles I frequent all without exception love his efforts so far. As with the rest of the team he gets better with game time. When things are not working for him, as was the case for a while (not 70 minutes either) yesterday he always runs his socks off. Unlucky not to net at least another. He and the club are exceeding my expectations and good luck to them all. Also must mention what a great game landolo had. I thought he was unlucky not to start against Bradford and a major factor in how we lost our shape and our way.
Great bounce back yesterday though!!!


Don't brag up Simpson too much until after the January transfer window closes.  Until then, he's doing a great job, but not up to top of League 1 standards.
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Batch
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« Reply #438 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 17:39:23 »

Quote from: Kinky Tom
You're a bundle of fun aren't you.

Sometimes a team's main forward isn't supposed to be their primary source of goals, Liverpool have won a PL & CL with such a forward.

but Salah got 19 and mane 18!
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Pericardinho

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« Reply #439 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 17:42:44 »

You're a bundle of fun aren't you.

Sometimes a team's main forward isn't supposed to be their primary source of goals, Liverpool have won a PL & CL with such a forward.

I’m just saying it how it is. You don’t have to agree of course.

As for your comparison, you’re really clutching there.
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Crozzer

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« Reply #440 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 17:43:24 »

There’ll be little competition there, as most football league clubs should know better than to have a teenage striker with no professional games under his belt as their primary goal source.

Don’t get me wrong, Simpson will be a good footballer, and will most likely have a career above the level he’s currently at. However, I judge players for how good they are now, irrespective of age. League 2 is a cut throat business, half the players we have now probably won’t be here next year, and when it comes to strikers, you take the best you can find. We aren’t here to develop players for other clubs, we are here to get promoted.

Yes Simpson has 6 goals, but stick Doyle or Yates in this team, they’d probably have double. We are 4th in the league for XG, and average 60-70% possession in most games. We are a strikers dream when we play like we did yesterday and if we had a better striker, I genuinely think we’d walk this league.

Without Simpson occupying defenders, McKirdy and others wouldn't be getting opportunities.  Doyle needed the ball teed up just right for him at his feet which Wellens understood.  Simpson offers more than that for the team.
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Pericardinho

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« Reply #441 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:05:30 »

Without Simpson occupying defenders, McKirdy and others wouldn't be getting opportunities.  Doyle needed the ball teed up just right for him at his feet which Wellens understood.  Simpson offers more than that for the team.

Sometimes he might, but I can also think of 4-5 games off the top of my head where we may as well have been playing with 10 men.

His inability to win headers and his lack of a first touch means more often than not, the ball ends up with the opposition coming straight back at us when we’re under pressure. You’d think for somebody of his size, he’d be way more of a handful in the air and would hold the ball up better. He doesn’t even jump properly for most aerial duels. I don’t know if it’s a lack of belief or if he’s just never been taught.

I’m not saying he doesn’t have good moments. The first half at Sutton he showcased what he should be doing way more often. Held it up very well and ran the channel. Won fouls and was genuinely involved in the game. Unfortunately we only see this version of Simpson for around 20 mins per match.
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Kinky Tom
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« Reply #442 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:10:18 »

I’m just saying it how it is. You don’t have to agree of course.

As for your comparison, you’re really clutching there.

I'm really not, as Crozzer has just said, he occupies defenders which gives the others the space and opportunity to get in where they are, Firmino is slightly different in that he presses the defence rather than have them worry about him with the ball but the point is very much the same, Firmino will never be chosen by Klopp for his goal threat but will play him whenever available for everything else he does for the team.

If you want to ignore that there are comparisons and parallels to be drawn to better teams and players then that's up to you, I can't argue, Firmino is a better player than Simpson but it's all relative to the team any player finds himself in.

Kevin Davies scored double figures once in 9 Premier League seasons but was absolutely integral to them staying there for so long, he averaged a goal about every 5 games and even played for England in that spell.

If Simpson can get 15+ goals he'll have been a great success. 
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Pericardinho

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« Reply #443 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:20:26 »

I'm really not, as Crozzer has just said, he occupies defenders which gives the others the space and opportunity to get in where they are, Firmino is slightly different in that he presses the defence rather than have them worry about him with the ball but the point is very much the same, Firmino will never be chosen by Klopp for his goal threat but will play him whenever available for everything else he does for the team.

If you want to ignore that there are comparisons and parallels to be drawn to better teams and players then that's up to you, I can't argue, Firmino is a better player than Simpson but it's all relative to the team any player finds himself in.

Kevin Davies scored double figures once in 9 Premier League seasons but was absolutely integral to them staying there for so long, he averaged a goal about every 5 games and even played for England in that spell.

If Simpson can get 15+ goals he'll have been a great success. 

The situations aren’t even remotely similar. Firmino is practically a false 9 who has 2 of the most clinical ‘inside forwards’ in world football to score goals. Simpson for us is a #9 who spends the majority of the game on the last shoulder of the defender.

Kevin Davies was good in the air. Simpson is not.

I understand what you’re saying. There’s examples of players who are selfless and benefit the team as a whole. I just don’t think that logic applies to Simpson. His main job is to score goals.

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Kinky Tom
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« Reply #444 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:43:40 »

I'm just really not sure his main job is to score goals and at this stage he has 66% of the goals the top scorer in our league has.

As it stands between him, Payne and McKirdy we can reasonably expect a return of about 45 goals, I think that is more than reasonable, especially as we don't actually concede too many and I think we're now creating more and more decent opportunities in general.

I'd wager the times you've had issue with his performances were mostly at home?  I think that's more a team issue and to do with us not dealing with the way teams set up against us better?

I get what you're saying too, he's our player for now and we can only judge him on what he does for us while here but there are only 8 players with more L2 goals than him so far and only 3 of those have 2 or 3 more.
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Jimmy HaveHave

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« Reply #445 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:51:52 »

Anyone know how many of his goals have been scored away
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Kinky Tom
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« Reply #446 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:54:55 »

Just looked, 4 of his 6.
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Kinky Tom
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« Reply #447 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:55:49 »

So level pegging home & away up to yesterday.
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Jimmy HaveHave

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« Reply #448 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:57:01 »

Would that suggest it's more to the way we set up away from home and he gets more chances
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RedRag

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« Reply #449 on: Sunday, October 31, 2021, 18:58:29 »

His main job is to score goals.
On your stated criterion however:

1.   with a goal conversion rate of 0.41 after his first 15 games in league football.  
2.   9th = top scorer in League 2 (just 3 goals off the top)
3.   1 goal off being 4th = top scorer.

I would call that a decent start for a teenager in his first 15 games as a first teamer in league football.

I appreciate you make other points, as do we all, that are interesting to raise and debate.  Especially given Simpon's youth and inexperience.  How will he turn out as a footballer and, selfishly for most of us, how will he work out for STFC this season or 1/2 season?

But for today, credit where credit's due.  He is in fact doing his main job.
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