His uplink play is class
11
Season Average Rating
- Appearances
- 25
- Goals
- 4
- Assists
- 2
- Yellow cards
- 1
It was an easier game than last game around for him, but he showed what he can do. So strong and class on the ball. His passing was really crisp and helped us open them up. If we could merge Höjlund and Zirkzee into one player we could have one hell of a player.
He'll either be "the goals will come" kind of CF or this is what he is. Time will tell. Regardless I'm impressed with his link up play at least.
Yeah I mean even if his ceiling is a bigger Firmino type, that's still an extremely useful player.
I still think he's a good finisher but not a "goalscorer" right now if that makes sense. His technique on many of his attempts is excellent, but he just needs a bit more urgency in some situations. It's a far cry from someone like Nunez who seems to just thrash it goalwards and hope for the best .
Agree with everything you said. No better time to have someone like Ruud at the club anyway, who can hopefully guide him to new heights in front of goal.
It is both amazing and frustrating to read at times.
Yeah. Striker with a good all round game is almost a must in today's football unless you are Haaland as you already said. But especially if you have Rashford on one and Garnacho on the other wing. So, seeing Hojlund being pretty mediocre was both disappointing and a bit confusing looking at the way we decided to build our attack. One winger who is a pure goalscorer and another one who is more willing to pass, but also direct and no stranger to go into blind alleys with the ball. It was never going to work.
Tbf, I do think we have improved combinations in our attack even if Hojlund continue to develop as more of a pure goalscorer if for example we pair him with Garnacho and Amad. Another plus with Zirkzee (and Amad breakthrough) is that we can put various, different combos in our attack and quite different in style. Think we are actually looking pretty good in attack, midfield and that midfield in corelation with ten Hag tactics remain with huge question marks though.
From when he signed we were told he was a Firmino type forward. Great at linking up play and bringing others into it but not an amazing goalscorer. Hopefully we get to see him play behind Hojlund
Unlucky not to get 2 today. Couldn't quite get enough power on it while stretching for it and it was a great block by the Southampton for his second chance.
Unlucky not to get 2 today. Couldn't quite get enough power on it while stretching for it and it was a great block by the Southampton for his second chance.
I think he was veery good today. In general I have been impressed by his overall game and his movement.
I also don't see the criticism about his finishing from today's game. I think he missed two chances, one where he stretched his leg, and another one with a good shot out of the box. Unless I missed another chance( i did miss some minutes of the game), those two were not by any means easy chances.
I also don't see the criticism about his finishing from today's game. I think he missed two chances, one where he stretched his leg, and another one with a good shot out of the box. Unless I missed another chance( i did miss some minutes of the game), those two were not by any means easy chances.
This is a valid remark, but I thought he looked a bit better today in that sense than in previous matches. Mainoo/Eriksen combo behind certainly didn't help and in theory we should look much better once Ugarte settles. Also, he can be paired with Mount at times.
Feck me, ten Hag really has a lot of options and players to choose from when you look at the squad (and if they are all fit).
I would guess the hope was was that Antony would provide the balance in terms of offering a bit more creativity to the front 3 last season. His form collapsing and Utd falling into Rash/Hojlund/Garnacho was never going to be well balanced, 3 guys who are head down, run and shoot. Hopefully Garnacho continues to develop and adds more play-making to his game, Amad has shown great promise in that aspect and if Zirkzee can bring that level against better teams, and up his intensity, it will allow those other guys to be more effective.,,
Love Bruno but would not be against ZZ dropping down into his position and being the link up guy to the strikers. He can bully defenders and has some zip on his passes. We can do the Joelinton move already now.
You are probably right. The only way it would make sense.
Joelinton is a beast with three lungs. Two completely different players. We should be looking to add another midfielder that is a hybrid between 10 and 8
I thought he had a great game outside of the 18 yard area. Inside there he needs to be more ruthless in front of goal, but this has been easily his best game for us thus far.
I agree with this.
On a day when we scored 3
I find him easily more impressive than Hojlund. Think I need to see a lot more football before I conclude whether or not his finishing is a real problem, just as I need to see a lot more chances before I can conclude whether Hojlund is the ‘one chance, one goal’ finisher he is made out to be.
But ultimately, from early viewing, I think he is a better player and better for the team. He is at least nearly scoring in every game, even against good teams, which has always been my biggest gripe with Hojlund. Zirkzee is supposed to be a support striker yet has several shots on goal every game. That’s a start. He also provides an extra player in the build up rather than just wanting the last touch only. I’m keeping my light on for this one.
But ultimately, from early viewing, I think he is a better player and better for the team. He is at least nearly scoring in every game, even against good teams, which has always been my biggest gripe with Hojlund. Zirkzee is supposed to be a support striker yet has several shots on goal every game. That’s a start. He also provides an extra player in the build up rather than just wanting the last touch only. I’m keeping my light on for this one.
This is the striker we need more of rather than an off the shoulder of the last defender type. Zirkee like Martial keeps moves going and once he understands his wide men better he will assist more, he is as technically assured as Martial but unlike the latter he gets at the end of things in the box.
So those complaining about finishing should ease of and remember how behind the play Hoijlund was at many instances last term. His technical assurance in tight places is a must have and there is no need to drop him down to a 10 or play the two of them. Let's see how is he is after 20 or so games in the PL because the various elements of his play are very promising.
But should have been about 6. Scoring 3 today as only put us on 0 GD
Teams tend to not score all their chances in a match
I agree. I’ve said before, but a striker like Hojlund is only vindicated being a regular for a top goal if he scores a huge amount if goals. Haaland doesn’t play for City as an 18 goals striker, whereas Martial might, for example.
It will be interesting to see how they both develop, but ultimately, I think Zirkzee needs to score less goals than Hojlund does to justify his place. Which may push Hojlund on to become such a goalscoring beast that we have no choice but to start him, but theoretically, I’d take a 15 goal Zirkzee over a 20 goal Hojlund. Probably.
We have plenty of players that will just shoot at sight of the goal. Personally I am happy to have more players like Zirkzee and Amad in the squad, players who are looking for a pass to put the pressure on opposition / open different angles.
The bottom line is, Zirkzee IS getting at the end of chances. This is a huge improvement compared to Hojlund.
I have no problem with him as long as he contributes to the general play like today, even if he misses some chances. This club was reliant on players doing feck all whole game just to come up with a moment of magic, we should move away from this and go for more sustainable setup. It seems Zirkzee is the right direction, if he can translate this to good performance against the big boys.
When was the last time we scored 3-0? Enjoy the moment
Hojlund seems to be "9 goals from 10" chances type of striker (last season he was). The problem was, he only managed to get those 10 chances last season, while Zirkzee is more of a 1 in 3 type of striker, while getting much more frequently on the end of those chances PLUS being much more useful player in the buildup.
Remains to be seen if Zirkzee conversion is a problem. Also, remains to be seen if Hojlund keeps his high conversion rate this season. Some of his goals have been quite lucky, while Zirkzee seems to be the "unlucky" side so far. I expect this to even out. Hojlund will have his use but I wouldn't be surprised if he is now Zirkzee backup.
True. But sometimes teams do tend to score all their chances in a match.
Impressive link-up play today. Has the ability to bring wide players into the game and offers an option to allow Bruno to roam forward (without ending up in a 424 with huge gaps between attack and midfield).
When Hojlund is fit, having 2 young strikers with varying profiles is excellent.
When Hojlund is fit, having 2 young strikers with varying profiles is excellent.
He's clearly adjusting to the pace and aggression of the league and I don't think his finishing can truly be assessed until he has a real time sense of how small his windows of opportunity actually are. He's drawing his foot back or angling himself thinking he has more time than he does and is then snatching at the attempt as it dawns on him that he doesn't actually have the time he thought he did.
What I would be more concerned about his jumping and aerial ability as that has nothing to do with adjusting to the league.
He looks like a good player with the potential to be a very good player. So long as he stays fit, I hope to see exponential growth in his game.
What I would be more concerned about his jumping and aerial ability as that has nothing to do with adjusting to the league.
He looks like a good player with the potential to be a very good player. So long as he stays fit, I hope to see exponential growth in his game.
He's a Noob and with 'quality'comments like that is likely to remain one
TBH I think Hojund will benefit the most from him, he's gonna create space for him and also feed him chances, Bruno's gonna have to start looking over his shoulder if he doesn't start bucking up
Adds something interesting, will be much better for the wide players than Rasmus Højlund, who, believe it or not, has not actually learnt to be in a place where he should be found. So many complaints about the service Rasmus got, yet McTominay was tapping them in for fun as a substitute midfielder.
Zirkzee can give and go. Rasmus could either learn a lot for him or just become a cult hero for fans who like watching a player blow out of their arse.
Zirkzee can give and go. Rasmus could either learn a lot for him or just become a cult hero for fans who like watching a player blow out of their arse.
That's something he'll get by playing, the PL is way more intense than most other leagues and it takes some players time to adjust
If he could be a 20 goal a season player, he would be a great player to have. Some of his touches can be a bit heavy or sloppy but a lot of his link up play is top tier. Just needs to stay involved throughout a match; for example today it took quite some time for him to even get a touch on the ball. And of course, doing a better job of converting his chances but the good thing is that he's getting on the end of good chances every match.
Also for the all the Berbatov comparisons, he puts in a lot more effort than Berbatov did.
Also for the all the Berbatov comparisons, he puts in a lot more effort than Berbatov did.
Whilst I agree, as I was sick and tired of seeing Rashford and Garnacho last season, who were both shooting on sight and dribbling into defenders, the bolded has nothing to do with what I had said though. I was specifically talking about a couple of chances where Zirkzee took too long to shoot.
(Seems like twitter is removing the clips, so make do with this)
1:11 - loose first touch but still enough room and time to lace that low and hard. It may have been blocked but it could have gone through/got deflected and was in an optimal area of the penalty box (despite the defenders there). That's prime real estate where you really shouldn't try to overthink.
1:43 - a bit too casual with the finish by trying to place it with a side foot by setting his back foot. Again needs to lace it (or lifting it) by stepping forward into the shot.
Both examples of what I meant to support the original conversation you were debating against, which was he was taking too long/being too cute. As others have said, it's still too early to say and I'm not being too critical because on another day, those could have went it. I wouldn't say they were poor decisions as I can see why he was hesitant for the first chance and just didn't get the technique right for the second but he will have to learn to be more decisive in those areas if they come up again.
Also as for the getting on at the end of chances being an improvement compared to Hojlund, I would say that's a bit harsh on the Dane. First, he had to play in a ultra suicidal 4-2-4 pressing formation last year where it meant there was little to no build up play and secondly, he was playing with ultra selfish Rashford/Garnacho and a useless Antony. He's not had a chance to play with these (still crap but slightly more progressive) tactics and Amad, who is basically reinvigorating our right wing alongside a much better Rashford (compared to last season anyways).
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The thing with his style of play is it's scary to imagine how good he can be by playing more often with the the likes of amad, bruno and garnacho
The good thing is that aside from his superb general play he is at least getting a lot of chances.
His first game starting with Amad and Rashford iirc but there looks to be a little hint of chemistry between the 3.
I like him.
Excellent performance.
I also agree with many that a center-forward like him is more valuable to the team than a goal-poacher(unless they're extraordinary like Haaland).
Him and Rashford mesh well together.
I also agree with many that a center-forward like him is more valuable to the team than a goal-poacher(unless they're extraordinary like Haaland).
Him and Rashford mesh well together.
He looks like he will score goals and his link up play is excellent so he looks the ideal addition to the squad.
I expect Hojlund to improve too so excited to see the competition between these two this season.
I expect Hojlund to improve too so excited to see the competition between these two this season.
Holjund looked so isolated last season what with everyone around him completely disinterested in anything other than either cutting inside and having a shot, or shooting long-range from the edge of the area, that I'd like to see these two play together. We haven't had two attacking players on the pitch who look like they've ever met or been aware of each other's existence for a long time.
My worry for both is that the manager will continue to expect results from feeding them scraps. All of our wider players and Fernandes need to be far less selfish to make it work