Rob Fielding is concerned at the lack of experienced forward options especially with Jayden Stockley picking up an injury recently.
Rob Fielding writes…
The sight of Jayden Stockley hobbling off at Swindon should concern all Vale fans. No-one wants to see the current top-scorer leave the pitch injured. If you’re statistically-minded you may be even more concerned. After all, Stockley is the only recognised forward at the club with any sort of significant experience. Of the other recognised forwards – Lorent Tolaj, Antwoine Hackford and Jemiah Umolu have a grand total of four League starts before this season. It would be a huge gamble to base a potential promotion campaign on that inexperienced line-up.
Darren Moore has said he counts Ronan Curtis as a forward as well but I think this muddies the water. I like Curtis’ play and attitude but I don’t see him as a centre-forward but rather an attacking player who can chip in with useful goals. It’s the same with Ethan Chislett, who seems to be out of favour anyhow.
Now the window is shut, Vale could have next to no experience if Stockley is out for any period of time. For all the cover in other areas of the pitch, Stockley remains irreplaceable as an experienced, proven targetman.
Some people have asked if Ruari Paton could be recalled to strengthen the attack but the answer is no. As the current rules stand (and Vale’s press release stated) Paton is on loan at Dundee United until the end of the season. Conceivably, Vale could move in the free agent market but is that realistic and does it not smack of desperation if they do? There’s hardly going to be a surfeit of experienced and proven free agent forwards (it goes against the logic of why players are free agents in the first place) and should one be added, presumably they will need time to get match fit.
For me, Paton’s move was the key to the dilemma that Vale find themselves in. When Paton’s move was agreed Vale did bring in another striker to replace him. However, that forward was Umolu – a player with zero League experience. It looked like a huge gamble to me. I hope Umolu is a big success and adapts quickly but it’s a big “if”. In my opinion, Vale would have better served to have made sure there was an experienced replacement for Paton. There may not have been one.
In which case, it may have made sense not to let Paton leave at all.
Agree or disagree? Post a comment with your thoughts at the end of this feature.
Yes thay need two strikers.thats y we are not winning games
Let’s hope Stockley’s injury isn’t serious. We have looked so much better with him and Tolaj up front, a favoured and more successful position for Tolaj. Whatever combination we have to play we have some big games coming up and we need to win them to keep our promotion hopes alive.
The loan of Paton to Dundee United with no 24 recall clause in the agreement is pure poor administration . Most loan deals have this recall but Vale have lost the plot.
The issue with vale is that we haven’t been making chances for any of the strikers (albeit it’s picked up since our “dip”)….
I think that if we get the ball into the box more frequently, we give who we have a chance to convert……
If Paton hadn’t gone on loan, there’s no guarantee that Moore would have selected him to start games. He didn’t before when Stockley was injured.
I think Paton is a really decent player, and someone at the Vale must also have thought so when the club splashed the cash to sign him. But, seems to me that Moore doesn’t rate him, hence Paton’s loan and replacement by an untried teenager.
The whole business is a bit odd, as is Moore’s continuing reluctance to regularly start the talented Chislett and Curtis.
Moore decided to start the season with only one experience striker in Stockley and even he wasn’t fit. The fact Moore had spent a large sum of money on both Paton and Tolay, he also had Chislett and Curtis at his disposal yet seemed happier to play loanees instead of them says a lot about his opinion of them.
It always surprises me they water the pitch when it so cold and that makes it very slippery and from a biomechanics point of view (witch is my professional knowledge as an MSc podiatrist conduces the chances of injury