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MC Fearfull

Can Holt cut it in the Premiership?

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I remember in the summer when people were debating whether Holt could cut it in the Championship, now I am thinking as we draw closer and closer to promotion, whether he can cut it in the big time .

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I was a bit dubious at the start of the season. His poor form seemed to suggest that he could not step up.That said, Holt is huge for us. I think he can make the step up :)

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Last October I would have doubted it, but now he is fully fit and with players around him able to supply a better service he seems to be perhaps on 25 for the season. (The arrival of Lansbury and Pacheco, the recovery to fitness by Surman and the growing confidence of Fox have supplmented the excellent work of Hooly.)

In the Premiership he would perhaps not stand out as before, but I would expect him to score 12-14 in a season, even with better defenders around him.For a big man, he is quick to latch on to the short and rapid balls along the six yard line, as we saw on Saturday.)

He is a traditional big, fearless, physical strikers, and while he and Davies perhaps lack some finesse they are still effective.

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I was debating this with a Premiership team supporting colleague yesterday. If you look at Holty''s first goal on Saturday and take that in isolation it tells you quite a lot.

Yes Pacheco did some good work and his cut back was good. There was still a lot to do. It''s easy to look at a 4 yard tap in and say "well he should put it away".Holt was behind two defenders and not only managed to get to the ball ahead of them, he also opened his instep up to angle the ball away from the keeper, rather than simply get it on target. Watch it again.

This kind of "striking" skill is exactly what people rave about when talking about people like Drogba. NOT for one second saying that Holt is as good as Drogba by the way!!! I am pointing out that we take it for granted (no pun intended) and so do pundits to a certain extent. If we are promoted - and I hope to God we are - I for one am going to love to see Holty banging a few in and getting Sky analysing every single finish in fine detail. He may well get the credit he is due from other quarters finally. He deserves it.

How many times have we seen a ball driven to the near post and Holt attack it and get ahead of very good defenders to put it away. His movement to the ball in the box is outstanding at times, and I honestly can''t think of another striker in this division who is as adept at doing that. Quite rightly Davies of Bolton gets good kudos for being that type of "clever" player and it is only over the last couple of seasons that he is being recognised for it. I can see Holty bagging just as many as him next season - I hope we get a chance to see that. In the words of Kevin Keegan - I would love it, absolutely love it.

Yes, it requires a good supply to him, but Holty doesn''t half make an average cross look good. As they say, the hardest thing in football is to put the ball in the back of the net.

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Very hard to tell, obviously he wouldn''t be as prolific but could still prove to be a handful for Premiership defenders and chip in with a few goals. If we do go up another Striker would be essential anyway to ease the pressure of Holt as as I can''t see the likes of Martin and Jackson cutting the mustard at a higher level. 

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I think Davies is a little better in the air than Holt, but the Holt is a little quicker. The comparison is a good one (as is Elmander). Also have to bear in mind that many target men are at their prime in their early thirties and that is exactly what Holt is getting towards. I think he`s still on an upward curve and can improve further.

Main problem would be getting a prolific scorer in to play alongside him without breaking the bank or adding an overpaid prima-donna to a fantastic group of pro`s......

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[quote user="3gamemarch"]I remember in the summer when people were debating whether Holt could cut it in the Championship, now I am thinking as we draw closer and closer to promotion, whether he can cut it in the big time .[/quote]Without him we may just as well agree to stay in Division Two for another year.Ridiculous question.

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With the right supply and a good partner to work with, yes! Doubt he would be touching on 20.. but I would fancy him to get maybe a cheaky 10 for the season which would be a good return if our midfield and second striker are scoring.More importantly its the other work on the pitch he does that I would think would help, holding the ball up and winning it in the air! Hes pretty high on the leagues assist table I believe...

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[quote user="Nexus_Canary"]I was a bit dubious at the start of the season. His poor form seemed to suggest that he could not step up.

That said, Holt is huge for us.
I think he can make the step up :)
[/quote]

[Y]This^^^

I humbly apologise to Grant for ever doubting him!!

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Assuming we get promoted, hopefully management won''t feel the need to butcher the winning combination in exchange for semi-high priced "talent" that ruins the chemistry.

Holt is a huge part of the winning mixture, and if we keep most of it together, he will do fine in the Prem. especially if Lambert keeps him on as captain. He''s our alpha male. :Let the big dog have his day!

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I''m sure he could make it in the Prem! I''d like to see him partnered by Nicky Maynard! The other strikers we have just won''t cut it!

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Nicky Maynard? I''d like Pacman again next season maybe or even Simeon to have a go. Mackail-Smith would be a good addition still and matches Holt''s workrate and goal-scoring, but less of a target player so should compliment him. Just hope we get there!!!

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sorry but you want simeon jackson next season despite him being pretty damn cr*p this season in the championship, you want him going against the likes of Terry, Vidic, Ferdinand, etc

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I think he could. He wouldn''t be as prolific as he is at the moment and I am sure some of the really top defenders would make him look more ordinary at times but he''s a pain in the backside for any defender to play against and some of these pampered prem players will no doubt get a nasty shock if Holty turns out against them next season. He is also a massive influence in our dressing room and a hugely popular player. If we do go up, I hope that Lambert (and the club) learn lessons from our last stint up there and give the majority of the players the opportunity to shine. I think many of them will do as the are all technically very good. Yes, they will need "a bit of help" from some new signings as Lambert tends to say but i would like to see us bring in maybe just a few quality players in key areas and give the bulk of the current squad a chance. After all team spirit is a quality you can''t really buy and we have it in abundance.

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more to the point, can Carlton Cole, Shola Ameobi, John Carew, Robbie Keane, (add "failure" here)...cut in the Prem?

..so I wouldn''t worry about our Holt just yet...he''ll be fine.

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