neonleon
Player Valuation: £35m
There was an interesting radio program hosted by Pat Nevin the other day about number ten's and how England either doesn't produce them or doesn't provide an outlet for their talents (its probably on the internet somewhere). Inevitably they end up forced to play roles unsuited to their mercurial creative talents - either as midfielders or strikers.
The ideal is to play off the main striker just behind, and to have a role that solely looks to attack, providing creativity; link up between the striker and the midfield and having the vision to find through balls and that perfect defence splitting pass.
None of this being forced to track back and getting behind the ball when we lose it stuff. The number ten role (doesn't have to be strictly number 10) is a free creative role that seeks to provide the ammunition of service, as well as score a few goals themselves.
The program argued that in England the strict adherence to 4-4-2 and a way of playing prevented potential number 10's (gazza, hoddle etc) from achieving success with their national teams. They also provided compelling evidence that every successful national team has had a player that represents the fulcrum of their attacking potential - zidane, ronaldinho, messi and maradona.
Seeing Everton through this prism brings interesting dividends. For one, Cahill primarily plays off the striker in this role. He successful at grabbing the goals but his job at linking up play and providing assists and creativity is totally sub standard. He doesn't possess the culture, technique, creativity, vision or passing ability of a fully fledged number ten. He's a compromise, providing much needed goals and grit in exchange for fluid and creative football.
Often Cahill loses possession of the ball, especially when trying to thread that killer ball through. His assists usually are about 4 or 5 a season which for a player in this position is pretty poor. When Pienaar was here he was getting 6 or 7 a season from the wing alone. Of course Cahill wins balls in the air, that's what he does. But its this lump it forward mentality that most Evertonians want to see gone from our play. A great many of us want to see measured possession, the ball distributed and played out from the back four, a five man midfield not as a bulwark against the opposition scoring but as a medium of possession and attacking intent. We need a number ten. A player that has the vision and skills to provide service to the rest of the team with the rhythmic alacrity of a metronome.
Arguably none of our squad are capable of this (although Arteta in his pomp would've been a great shout before he was sentenced to play on the outskirts of the wing or as a deep lying midfielder). But I'd like to suggest two potential contenders.
Leon Osman - probably our best shout, as he's not quick or strong enough for the role on the wing and he has passing ability and vision. It's no coincidence that our best form in recent years has seen Osman playing at his very best. He orchestrated wins against United and Chelsea and I can see no reason why Cahill should take this position from him. If it comes to it play Cahill as a striker rather than move Osman anywhere else.
Ross Barkley - ok none of us know what he can do yet so its all conjecture. But we've all seen this nascent talent show not only skill, craft and application but also a touch of flair and culture - if he could only be nurtured into a number ten role it could pay dividends for the team in the future. My fear is he'll be shuffled about like most of the squad are, due to limited numbers and injuries and will never settle into a definitive role suited to his talents. Maybe that will be on the wing but it would be exciting to see if he could fit the number ten mould.
The final alternative would be to buy such a player in. Modric would be nice. But yes these players come at a premium and I'm fairly sure that all of this is moot anyway as Moyes doesn't appear to like giving players such a free reign in attacking. It's this rigidity in his attacking football philosophy that impedes us sometimes. It's precisely the same nature in him that makes us so formidable in defence.
Can anyone think of a reasonably priced player who could work this role? Do you think Cahill hinders us in this role? What are your thoughts people?
The ideal is to play off the main striker just behind, and to have a role that solely looks to attack, providing creativity; link up between the striker and the midfield and having the vision to find through balls and that perfect defence splitting pass.
None of this being forced to track back and getting behind the ball when we lose it stuff. The number ten role (doesn't have to be strictly number 10) is a free creative role that seeks to provide the ammunition of service, as well as score a few goals themselves.
The program argued that in England the strict adherence to 4-4-2 and a way of playing prevented potential number 10's (gazza, hoddle etc) from achieving success with their national teams. They also provided compelling evidence that every successful national team has had a player that represents the fulcrum of their attacking potential - zidane, ronaldinho, messi and maradona.
Seeing Everton through this prism brings interesting dividends. For one, Cahill primarily plays off the striker in this role. He successful at grabbing the goals but his job at linking up play and providing assists and creativity is totally sub standard. He doesn't possess the culture, technique, creativity, vision or passing ability of a fully fledged number ten. He's a compromise, providing much needed goals and grit in exchange for fluid and creative football.
Often Cahill loses possession of the ball, especially when trying to thread that killer ball through. His assists usually are about 4 or 5 a season which for a player in this position is pretty poor. When Pienaar was here he was getting 6 or 7 a season from the wing alone. Of course Cahill wins balls in the air, that's what he does. But its this lump it forward mentality that most Evertonians want to see gone from our play. A great many of us want to see measured possession, the ball distributed and played out from the back four, a five man midfield not as a bulwark against the opposition scoring but as a medium of possession and attacking intent. We need a number ten. A player that has the vision and skills to provide service to the rest of the team with the rhythmic alacrity of a metronome.
Arguably none of our squad are capable of this (although Arteta in his pomp would've been a great shout before he was sentenced to play on the outskirts of the wing or as a deep lying midfielder). But I'd like to suggest two potential contenders.
Leon Osman - probably our best shout, as he's not quick or strong enough for the role on the wing and he has passing ability and vision. It's no coincidence that our best form in recent years has seen Osman playing at his very best. He orchestrated wins against United and Chelsea and I can see no reason why Cahill should take this position from him. If it comes to it play Cahill as a striker rather than move Osman anywhere else.
Ross Barkley - ok none of us know what he can do yet so its all conjecture. But we've all seen this nascent talent show not only skill, craft and application but also a touch of flair and culture - if he could only be nurtured into a number ten role it could pay dividends for the team in the future. My fear is he'll be shuffled about like most of the squad are, due to limited numbers and injuries and will never settle into a definitive role suited to his talents. Maybe that will be on the wing but it would be exciting to see if he could fit the number ten mould.
The final alternative would be to buy such a player in. Modric would be nice. But yes these players come at a premium and I'm fairly sure that all of this is moot anyway as Moyes doesn't appear to like giving players such a free reign in attacking. It's this rigidity in his attacking football philosophy that impedes us sometimes. It's precisely the same nature in him that makes us so formidable in defence.
Can anyone think of a reasonably priced player who could work this role? Do you think Cahill hinders us in this role? What are your thoughts people?
