Should Stokes be dropped?

Even being out from his red card hasn't seemed to changed anything, that was a little rest from the side that everyone thought he needed. Nothing has been different to his play, especially finishing and decision making, concerning stuff.

 

Stokes started the season on fire both scoring and general attacking play .
Stokes is like big Sammi when you warm to him and are pleased with his
form he goes right off the boil . His general play has been fine but as an
attacker he needs to score . I think with Griffiths here he might find it hard
to get a starting place , he needs to score regularly if he is going to feature .
He won't be sold for at least a year or eighteen months , as he is an experienced
striker and will be needed as back up at least .

 

Si

 

He plays better with a partner and he hasn't had that this season. Stokes, imo, is still the best striker we have at the club.

 

Yeah, he should be. This was a massive season for the lad, after Hooper departed in the summer I fully expected Stokes to grab the bull by the horns, so to speak and bang the goals in but for some reason its just not happened for him, so its only fair that someone else should be given the chance to shine.

 

Whats that 4 in 20 games? Only kidding fair play to him good goal.

 

What a touch that was.

 

Yes/no who else is there?

 

Great touch for the goal, but it ain't been happening enough for him, I thought he was coming out that selfishness that he had, but it reared it's ugly head the other week when he elected to try and go round the goalie.

Got off to a good start at the weekend and then disappeared totally.

I'd give the other guys up front the chance now, I'd go with Balde and Griffiths.

 

hasn't he been our assist leader since he got here?

A bit lost in the doom and gloom of the last little bit is that stokesy scored an absolute cracker.

 

Goal was good. But he should be dropped.

 

Lenny will always play Stokes and Sammy, loyal till the end. I don't know what it will take to give anyone else a chance.

 

I actaully thought he was let down badly at the weekend by the players behind him. I've not been a massive fan this season, but he pressed very well from the front on Saturday and took his goal very well. However, at one point, you seen him telling the midfield to press the game higher up the park, in the end, I think he ran himself into the ground closing down, whilst getting very little help from behind him. Our midfield ultimately lost us the game on Saturday.

 

I think that's been the story for most of this season mate, our midfield just haven't worked properly with the strikers, the strikers make a run and the ball never comes. Pukki in particular just stopped making runs and went searching for the ball.

 

I just thought he did a lot of closing down and tried his best to press the game from the front, which is what we should have been looking to do, but he got very little help in that aspect. Most games are won and lost in midfield, and that was where we lost the game on Saturday. Johansen & Brown were dreadful if truth be told.

 

I don't blame Johansen and Brown, I blame the tactics. Left them totally exposed and had to do a * of a lot of running about, as always happens when we play with two wingers. There's just no point in it and it's infuriating.

I agree with what you're saying, however I feel it's been that way all season.

 

Samaras playing was nothing short of a disgarce, but even with the two wingers, we almost matched up like for like with Aberdeen. The only slight difference in terms of formation was that Pawlett played slightly deeper than Commons did, but his main priority was to get up and support Rooney. The biggest factor in all of it I think, is we didn't match them in terms of workrate.

 

I think Pawlett being there is what done it. Johansen dropped slightly back trying to pick him up, Broony was left against Flood and Robson, Sammy and Forrest don't do defensive work whereas Hayes and McGinn would float in and help out the midfield and full backs.

Our midfield was outnumbered and unbalanced. Johansen and Brown were asked to do too much. Reminded me of N'Guemo and Crosas being left stranded under Mowbray.

 

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