Mateta Conundrum

ASCPFC said:
If you're not scoring you get dropped for someone that will and you wait for your chance again. I wouldn't hesitate in starting Nketiah now and bringing on Mateta if that doesn't work. It's just the way it is.
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Yep Nketiah has to start for me now. He's looked lively and sharp with his limited game time.

JP hasn't got a great return with the chances he's had, and a few of his misses wont count as they were flagged off. He really has missed some sitters.
 
MrRobbo said:
Yep Nketiah has to start for me now. He's looked lively and sharp with his limited game time.

JP hasn't got a great return with the chances he's had, and a few of his misses wont count as they were flagged off. He really has missed some sitters.
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It's not just that, particularly the last game, his decision making was awful or even selfish and may have cost us where some more intelligent or selfless play may have brought a win.

If you have a striker who's off form and desperate for a goal, this seems a likely occurrence.
 
I think in hindsight Nketiah should've started either Kyiv or Everton - JP has played a huge amount of minutes and Nketiah has made a good impact off the bench... feels like an easy spot to give him a start and give JP a rest.

I do think Glasner is going to need to trust the squad more as we move through the season, particularly in these 3-game weeks.
 
PatrickA said:
JPM is more than just a goalscorer.
He provides a physical presence and links up the play.
When he's off the field I never feel as confident defending corners and set pieces e g yesterday when Everton dwarved us at corners and set pieces towards the end.
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i agree his goalscoring form has been off since the Millwall injury and his few one on ones have been terrible (compare them with say Ipswich last year, which was class) but he is such a vital component of our forward line.

Eddie just can't hold the ball up and i can see Ollie's dilemma as JP often looks spent after 70 minutes but we are a lesser team without him.

Was hoping he'd now have a rest, but the France call up may have come at the worst time.
 
Mateta has to play in my opinion. As mentioned he helps out by holding up play as well as defending at corners. He certainly missed some easy chances yesterday but Pickford did make one great save from one of his efforts. If anything yesterday Pino was struggling straight after the restart and perhaps Nketia should have come on for him. I also thought Lerma should have come on for Sarr and moved Kamada further forward. Substitutions didn’t help yesterday and perhaps changes were wrongly made. I also felt Munoz and Mitchell didn’t look as strong second half which didn’t help the back 3 or the forward play. Basically it was one game to many for a number of players but I also felt Glasner didn’t help. I would also have expected Hughes to get on but that also didn’t happen. Perhaps he was carrying a knock from Thursday? Hopefully we are back to winning ways and up to speed again against Bournemouth?
 
I don't disagree with the comments about JP's wider contribution which is excellent, but the reality is he's not going to be able to start 50+ games this season - we need to find a way to play without him, and my view is we should get started on that adjustment sooner rather than later.
 
CPFCSaturn said:
I don't disagree with the comments about JP's wider contribution which is excellent, but the reality is he's not going to be able to start 50+ games this season - we need to find a way to play without him, and my view is we should get started on that adjustment sooner rather than later.
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There may be a time , or a time within games, to give a front 3 of Sarr , Nketiah and Uche a go.
Sarr and Uche have a bit of physicality and pace about them, which could lessen the load on Nketiah and concentrate more on his strengths.
This would also give Mateta and Pino a break even if they would normally be first choice.
Of course Uche would have to demonstrate that he is trusted to have such involvenent.
 
For those suggesting that Nketiah should start, like all strikers he'll need a good run of games to get into the groove; also there will need to be a tweaking of the tactics given Eddie's inability to be a hold up striker. I believe Mateta will come good again soon and expect OG will continue to start him.
 
If Mateta is fit, he should start. He's not playing badly, just not always scoring.
A fresh Nketiah off the bench is a great option when closing out a game.
 
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