Opinion: the addition of Faal may have solved a problem upfront

Rob Fielding thinks that new loan signing Mo Faal fulfils a role that Vale had previously failed to address over the summer.

Rob Fielding writes…

I’m pleased to see the loan addition of Wrexham striker Mo Faal because he seems to be the exact profile I’ve been calling for over the summer.

For this Vale fan, the one issue with the team’s frontline was the lack of cover/competition for Jayden Stockley which, given the big man’s injury issues, would look to be an important weakness to address. However, Faal, while less experienced, has the height and physical presence to be able to offer that.  The “Stockley role” is so important and it may be underestimated how much Lorent Tolaj benefitted from the work Stockley did alongside him (aerial prowess, clever layouts, physical duels and intelligent play) to help him develop as he did.

A Port Vale side missing a Stockley type is a lesser team so the addition of Faal is, to me, an important step. I think he can be seen as the missing part of the jigsaw upfront. He’s clearly not an exact like-for-like replacement for Stockley, but he has the height and physical presence which none of the other forwards, Stockley apart, possess. Vale previously had to rely on Stockley’s presence if they wanted to play a more direct style – now they have an alternative physical presence in the ranks.

Faal’s addition means Vale can select from seven players upfront – and those seven cover a variety of different roles while also providing competition and cover for most of them.

• We have the number nines – firstly, Lorent Tolaj and (I’m really hoping Tolaj will be pushed by him) Ruari Paton.
• We have the pace of Ben Waine which is so useful on the break. That’s now the one position we don’t have cover for.
• We have the “hybrid” forwards (for want of a better phrase) in Ronan Curtis and Rico Richards – both of which can add skill, assists and goals of their own upfront while not being traditional “centre-forwards”.
• We have Stockley and all he brings. The missing bit was another targetman/linkman if Stockley was injured – and Faal looks well placed to be able to play that part.

So, it looks to me like Vale now have plenty of cover and options upfront. When you add that to the numbers in central midfield and on the flanks, then Darren Moore certainly has strength in depth and perhaps his only problem may be keeping all the members of his squad happy.