Can Sam Baldock be our 20 goal striker next season if he stays free of injury....

[halbpro]

He IS a good player, but there aren't many players in the Championship who get 20+ goals,and I just don't think Sam Baldock has it in him to be one of those players. (But please prove me wrong Sam)

If he is played in the right position, and in the right formation, and with the right players around him, he can get a 15 goal return, which isn't too shabby.

Yeah if he can get to about 1 in 2.5 games that'll be solid. As Blackburn proved last season though, 20 goals a season strikers are not enough.

 

[clippedgull]

If he plays to his form then I can see him getting around 10 goals but certainly not one to rely on.

 

[symyjym]

When he was in the side he was playing a role he was unfamiliar with. I thought he was getting better in that role, but his progressed was slowed by the fact he was in and out of the side due to injuries.

So, while I don't disagree with people calling for him to be played in a position he's more familiar with, I think if he can stay fit he would be a lot more effective if he ended up playing the same role.

Yep, it's a misconception that if a player starts on the wing, they stay on the wing. If play builds up wide on the opposite side to him he will go narrow into a striker role. Formation is fluid and there are no strict ridged rules for the front three. A well rehearsed team should be able to go from 433 to 442 at the drop of a hat, so the starting formation doesn't really mean anything.

 

[Turkey]

I think he could score a decent number of goals for us, but only if played up front in a forward two. Would quite like us to play 3-5-2 when we can, lots of sides going that direction now.

 

[Tony Meolas Loan Spell]

To get anyone scoring 20+ goals for AMEX era Albion the club needs 1 of 2 things to happen:-

1) A player considerably better than the Championship, playing in 90% of the games.
or
B) A fundamental change in how the entire team attack the opposition.


Option A isn't likely to be walking through the door anytime soon.
Whether CH is the manager for option 2 is open to debate.

spot on

 

[Meade's Ball]

I'm not a giant lover of the Baldock way, but neither would I weep with dismay over his inclusion if we played that slight two-man-up-front-ness that many crave but is unlikely to happen. There could be a role for him, but for me it is not as one of a front 3. He improved in that wideman role, but that doesn't make him excellent at it, or even hugely memorable. Hughton was shoving together the parts that he had, so this summer should be filled enough with new squad members suitable for their positions, even if the power to multitask is one of them. We should have a more attractive and deadly Brightonstein's monster this time around.
I can see Baldock coming off the bench in a change of formation during games, and nipping in to bag a couple here and there.

 

[seagullsovergrimsby]

It might help if Kaz is allowed to hug the touchline and not drift infield like a centre midfielder moving towards goal.

 

[Codner pharmaceuticals]

yes

 

[Baaaald]

I think so. He was playing wide too much last year. Never got a run of games in the centre. Hope we get the chance to see him in his best position.

 

[Tyrone Biggums]

Its like every year a thread was like this was started for the last 4 years but the question was refering to CMS. So Baldock is the new CMS.