McCormack wants to join us and fee agreed with fulham

[GJP 79]

But McCormack can be a better player for the team. And that''s what it''s about.

Hooper is not a great team player.

[Year of the tiger 54]

I''ll go back to what AN said about Hooper at a forum last season.

Hooper is fine in a side like Celtic who create loads of chances in the penalty area but we are not good enough to play in this league with 10 men.

[KeiranShikari_2 0]

Why are people people comparing Hooper and McCormack anyway? Ross McCormack was their equivalent to Huckerby last season, he was doing everything. He''s even plays a season for Leeds as a winger.

[Indy_Bones 441]

Christ on a bike, will people stop moving the goalposts because this is getting ridiculous.Neither player (Hooper or McCormack) really suits the system AN has used since arriving, yes McCormack has a good work rate and effort level, yes he provides slightly more assists than Hooper (1 in 5 vs 1 in 7), is more likely to work for the team than Hooper did/would, and he''s more of a threat from set-pieces, but his goalscoring is no better, he''s 2 years older, and he''s costing 4 times the price (which would also be our record transfer fee) in exchange!Simeon Jackson was a good team player, but I wouldn''t have selected him over Chrissy Martin, nor would I have justified paying 4 times more for Jackson in the process, especially when Martin has since proven conclusively that he''s a much better goalscorer than Jackson ever was.If McCormack was going for maybe 5-6 mil, then we probably wouldn''t be having half these discussions as it would be a fairly priced gamble as to whether or not he can work in AN''s setup, and that we won''t likely get any real re-sale value either, but when you''re talking about paying a club record fee for a 30 year old who''s only ever performed at Champs level at best, and may not even fit the system (much like Hooper and RvW didn''t), then it becomes a different kettle of fish entirely.

[TIL 1010 4,738]

19 pages and he still has not signed. [:O]

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="KeiranShikari"]He''s even plays a season for Leeds as a winger.[/quote]When???Over the past 200+ games he''s been played on the left less than a dozen times!That''s not to say that he doesn''t frequently drift out there (much like Hucks or even Henry), but unless he played there quite a bit back in the 2010/2011 season (which I can''t find the data for atm), then I''d argue that he''s never actually been a winger (or at least not in the past 5-6 years which is surely more relevant), much like how Lafferty isn''t a winger despite making a few appearances out there from time to time...

[GJP 79]

Chris Martin is a better player for the team than Jackson.

Like McCormack is better than Hooper.

[zippy23255 0]

TIL do you think it will ever beat the Quagliarella record of posts and still not sign 😂😂

[KeiranShikari_2 0]

Can''t remember the year but I''m pretty sure Becchio and Varney were used up top far more often than him. Wide forward would have perhaps been a better term. Probably the year his goal tally was severely hit.

[Indy_Bones 441]

One other question for the fans who fervently want us to sign McCormack is this:Last season we played basically the entire season with a lone striker (either Jerome or Mbokani), yes at times we may have switched to 2 or even 3 when desperately chasing a game, but the vast majority of the time, it was with a big target man upfront to start the game and throughout.The season before in the Champs, AN primarily favoured a lone striker, with 9 out of the last 10 games being setup in this manner, and it being his most used tactical setup since joining.With all that in mind, what makes you guys think that AN is suddenly going to change the system he''s used in pretty much his entire time here, and thus why are we clamouring to pay a club record fee to sign McCormack who doesn''t play as a lone striker, wouldn''t fit playing as a lone striker, and we already have THREE players who can all play the role off that lone striker more than adequately???If we didn''t have Wes, Naismith or Maddison, I could understand it far more, but at the minute I just don''t understand either the logic, nor the price tag...

[king canary 7,604]

My brother in law is a Fulham fan so I''ve seen McCormack live a few times. He definitely offers more in his all round play than Hooper ever did. His passing and link up play is good, he has vision and he has a knack for finding space.

Fulham were an odd team last year- scored a huge amount of goals but were terrible defensively. He usually played off Dembele or Woodrow when I saw him but they didn''t used to go long from what I remember. In our team I wonder if we might have an interchangeable front 3 or 4 with him, Naismith, Wes and one other of Jerome, Canos and Murphy trying to pull defences out of position.

[Year of the tiger 54]

The reason I want us to sign RM is because that is what the manager wants.

If he is wrong it is him who will take the fall. I want us to back the manager in a way that we have not always done as we''ve so often settled for plan c or d.

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 1,749]

Indy wrote:

"With all that in mind, what makes you guys think that AN is suddenly going to change the system he''s used in pretty much his entire time here, and thus why are we clamouring to pay a club record fee to sign McCormack who doesn''t play as a lone striker, wouldn''t fit playing as a lone striker, and we already have THREE players who can all play the role off that lone striker more than adequately???"

I''m guessing that if Neil wants him and is prepared to pay the kind of figures being talked a bout that he has a plan in mind on how he wants to use him wouldn''t you think??

maybe he plans to play both Jerome and McCormack in a diamond.

maybe he believes McCormack is better than Jerome and will make him the no.1 striker??

but its seems a little odd than you are suggesting that Neil would want him without having an idea in mind as to how he would use him?

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="KeiranShikari"]Can''t remember the year but I''m pretty sure Becchio and Varney were used up top far more often than him. Wide forward would have perhaps been a better term. Probably the year his goal tally was severely hit.[/quote]Ok, we''re sort of getting somewhere now.The only time that Varney and Becchio were both at the club with McCormack was the 12/13 season, and during that season Leeds pretty much played a classic 4-4-2, Becchio played all 38 of his matches upfront with McCormack playing off him/alongside him in approx 29 matches and with McCormack making just 1 start on the left wing. Varney playing on the left 27 times compared to just 4 upfront, and with Paul Green being the favoured choice on the right side, that completes the main forwards.I''m not trying to bludgeon you with this either Keiran, but McCormack has at no point over the past 5-6 seasons EVER been regularly used on the left wing or even really as a wide forward, and I just think it''s simply his regular desire to drift out that way that may have made it seem like that was the case, but he''s absolutely a central player first and foremost, just one who moves around a lot - and particularly towards the left side.

[Indy 3,297]

Yep like do we really know this is what AN wants, he''s never said he wanted McCormack, some Twitter link started it and the press followed.......we have never really confirmed the link as a club!

I love everyone being so sure on McCormack, when really he''s not that good or he''d be signed by a Premiership side!

[KeiranShikari_2 0]

I''ve already given that answer in previous posts. I expect Naismith will push up and we''ll virtually be playing 2 up top. Ross McCormack will come short at times with Naismith running in behind him. We''ll also have a hell of a lot more of the ball so the wingers and midfielders will support.

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary"]but its seems a little odd than you are suggesting that Neil would want him without having an idea in mind as to how he would use him?[/quote]Not really, as that''s EXACTLY what happened with Hughton and RvW for starters.None of Hughton, Adams or AN managed to get the best out of Hooper, and quite what part of loaning in Bamford and then hardly using him made sense from AN either?Managers aren''t infallible, they make mistakes just like the rest of us, and this whole McCormack saga seems simply like we''ve just picked the highest scoring striker still at this level (seeing as how Gray has gone up with Burnely) and said "Him", without fully thinking about the overall picture.I''d love to be proved wrong here, and whatever happens I''ll give the team and manager my support, but at the minute I''m just not seeing the logic, and until I can, I''ll be voicing my not insubstantial concerns (even though the manager and club have ZERO interest in what I have to say and will take f**k all notice of the chat on MB''s).

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="KeiranShikari"]I''ve already given that answer in previous posts. I expect Naismith will push up and we''ll virtually be playing 2 up top. Ross McCormack will come short at times with Naismith running in behind him. We''ll also have a hell of a lot more of the ball so the wingers and midfielders will support.[/quote]But what evidence do we have that AN is suddenly going to rip up his favoured method of play for nearly the past 2 seasons and suddenly switch to 2 upfront - particularly when neither Naismith nor McCormack are the type of players AN has regularly used there???????There just seems to me a lot of wishful thinking going on here, with the blinders being put on purely because of McCormack''s goalscoring record at this level, when in fact the bigger picture on the evidence we have, suggests that it may not be the best fit, nor the best price.

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 1,749]

ok, granted it might be difficult to see how McCormack would fit into the side.....as I said ,it could look this this in a midfield diamond...

......McCormack......Jerome.....

....................Naismith or Hoolahan.....

.............Dorrans..............Howson......

...........................Tettey.....................

with width being supplied by Olsson and Pinto from full back,would that be so much of a surprise?

.

even if we cant envisage that, how about my other suggestion that Alex Neil simply believes that McCormack is better than Jerome and would make him is no.1 striker with Jerome on the bench using his preferred formation, no shoehorning players in, no changing of formations.....it maybe as simple as that??

[ron obvious 1,502]

king canary

"My brother in law is a Fulham fan so I''ve seen McCormack live a few times. He definitely offers more in his all round play than Hooper ever did. His passing and link up play is good, he has vision and he has a knack for finding space.

Fulham were an odd team last year- scored a huge amount of goals but were terrible defensively. He usually played off Dembele or Woodrow when I saw him but they didn''t used to go long from what I remember. In our team I wonder if we might have an interchangeable front 3 or 4 with him, Naismith, Wes and one other of Jerome, Canos and Murphy trying to pull defences out of position. "

This.

[KeiranShikari_2 0]

The fact that we''re paying around 12 million for a player and Neil isn''t an idiot makes me think that he''ll change/tweak it. It wouldn''t be that huge a change as despite his stature he can retain posession. To be fair, even in a system that isn''t perfect for him Ross McCormack will still score goals. He''s a good player, as well as a good striker.

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary"]ok, granted it might be difficult to see how McCormack would fit into the side.....as I said ,it could look this this in a midfield diamond...

......McCormack......Jerome.....

....................Naismith or Hoolahan.....

.............Dorrans..............Howson......

...........................Tettey.....................

with width being supplied by Olsson and Pinto from full back,would that be so much of a surprise?[/quote]It would to me because at no point has AN even vaguely looked like favouring that type of approach.[quote]even if we cant envisage that, how about my other suggestion that Alex Neil simply believes that McCormack is better than Jerome and would make him is no.1 striker with Jerome on the bench using his preferred formation, no shoehorning players in, no changing of formations.....it maybe as simple as that??[/quote]So you''re suggesting we replace our big, strong, aerially efficient, lone striker ''target man'', with a player who isn''t any of those things (but who obviously has his own different and equally impressive qualities in their own right), but whilst still retaining the same approach and method of play and somehow think that will work??????We all saw how well THAT approach worked under Hughton and to a lesser degree Adams...AN may decide to change the system, but if we genuinely want to stick with, and play the lone striker system, then McCormack is completely unsuited to replacing Jerome - but could be used instead of Wes/Naismith (which seems utterly pointless spending to me),

[ron obvious 1,502]

You''re really angry about poor old Wolfie aren''t you.

But time is a great healer. Bless.

[GJL Mid-Norfolk Canary 1,749]

...the main difference is that we potentially dont have the wide men avaailable to us next season that Neil has in the past, with Redmond gone, Jarvis injured and question marks over Brady''s future (I suppose we may know more about that at 3pm today?).....he may feel that having two 20+ goal strikers in the team and working around that is a better way to go than starting the season with the largely young and untested group of wingers we have?

[Mason 47 1,379]

It''s odd, the general consensus seems to be that we are only going to play one system this year.

You never know. Maybe Alex Neil has looked at last year and realised not having a plan B was somewhat of an issue.

[KeiranShikari_2 0]

Did some digging, he was used as a winger whilst at Cardiff. One of the reasons he left to go to Leeds.He''s not a winger but my post was about him having the versatility to cover there if needed.

[Indy 3,297]

Yes versatility, Whitts can play a holding midfield position if needed.........no it doesn''t work!

Well if city stump up 12 million for this signing I''ll be very surprised but won''t hold my breath for him to score 20+ goals.

What I would say is that AN signings this far haven''t been great and this one doesn''t look that good on paper more a "there''s no one else out there so I''ll sign a new Hooper!"

[STFU 0]

Is anyone else completely bored with this thread?

[SwindonCanary 455]

Next post should really be telling us that he''s signed !

[Indy_Bones 441]

[quote user="KeiranShikari"]Did some digging, he was used as a winger whilst at Cardiff. One of the reasons he left to go to Leeds.He''s not a winger but my post was about him having the versatility to cover there if needed.[/quote]I get your idea, but that''s like playing Wes out on the left wing because he used to play there donkey''s years ago for Blackpool!It would make no sense to sign a guy who hasn''t been played more than a handful of times on the wing for over SIX years (and has been scoring consistently as a forward ever since) to play that role, and whilst theoretically he could cover it, it would be an utter waste of his ability, much like how playing Wes there now is a waste of his.