Tag Archives: league-one

Looking for a Goalscoring Striker? Try Adam Moseley

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Player profiles and tagged with , , , , , , , , , , ,
Courtesy of therealefl.co.uk

It is Wigan Athletic’s worst start for 32 years. Latics lie at the bottom of League One after successive defeats in their first three games, and the alarm bells are already ringing. There is talk of relegation and, once again, the club is being criticised for not investing a significant sum to bring in a proven goalscorer over the summer. The question being asked by supporters is an obvious one: where are the goals going to come from?

The defeat at Wimbledon on Sunday was the most frustrating of the three. The losses at Cambridge and at home to Leyton Orient, goals were conceded through a combination of defensive errors and an inability to deal with pressure. Yet, despite conceding seven goals in three games, it is not the defence that seems to worry many supporters most. Latics would have won the Wimbledon game if they had not squandered so many scoring opportunities.

Up to this point there has been no settled defensive line-up. Individual mistakes in the back three have proved costly and, as a unit, they have not yet looked particularly comfortable. However, there is still a feeling that the defensive problems can be overcome as the new players settle in and the back three develop an understanding.

The arrival of centre-back Finley Burns from Manchester City has certainly been welcomed. At 23, he brings a sense of calm to the defence, is thoughtful in his passing and uses his 6ft 5in frame to good effect when dealing with the high balls that often rain into the penalty area in the third tier of English football. Having already made 69 League One appearances during spells with Stevenage and Reading, he looks, on paper at least, a very good signing at this level.

Despite his injury niggles, James Carragher remains a top defender at this level, while it appears that the experienced Morgan Fox could be moving on before the transfer window closes. Latics already have Llyton Chapman, who did well in the nine league games he played during the second half of last season, while Jeremiah Chilokoah-Mullen arrived as a free agent from Dunfermline after making 43 appearances for them last season. Jon Mellish has also returned following his year-long loan at Milton Keynes Dons, where he played 34 games. He has been used at left centre-back so far, although he is likely to become more of a utility player as the season progresses.

There are therefore reasons to believe that the defensive situation will improve. New players need time to settle, defenders need an understanding of each other’s game and, perhaps most importantly, there is plenty of the season still to play.

But where are the goals going to come from?

Gary Caldwell continues to insist that goals are not the sole responsibility of centre-forwards or central strikers and that everybody in the team needs to contribute. There is a rationale to that argument. Modern football is increasingly about goals coming from all areas of the pitch. But supporters will remember the dramatic turnaround last season when a player with a proven goalscoring record was brought in during January.

Ryan Lowe had brought in Dara Costelloe, Paul Mullin and Christian Saydee over the summer, while Maleace Asamoah was already at the club. Costelloe had scored regularly for Burnley’s academy before loan spells at Bradford City, St Johnstone and Dundee, although his record at those clubs was just one goal in 39 appearances. He then improved his return considerably at Accrington, scoring five in 17, and Mansfield, where he scored six in 15.

Unfortunately, his first season at Wigan produced only three goals from 25 starts and 16 substitute appearances. Asamoah, Mullin and Saydee contributed just seven goals between them. When Mullin’s loan from Wrexham was terminated in January, Wigan brought in Joe Taylor on loan, and his 11 goals helped lift Latics out of the relegation zone.

That is why the current situation is under some scrutiny.

Over the summer Caldwell signed Sonny Perkins, 22, for a small fee from Leyton Orient. Perkins had been a regular goalscorer for England’s junior teams during his time with Leyton Orient and West Ham, but those goals have become increasingly difficult to find as his senior career has progressed.

A look at the current forwards’ career EFL league records gives some cause for concern:

Player Appearances   Goals
Dara Costelloe      68     14
Sonny Perkins    48       5
Christian Saydee    161      14
Chris Sze    13       1

This is not to say they are bad players, and it is certainly not an argument for writing any of them off. Perkins, in particular, has a pedigree that suggests there could be considerably more to come. He came through the West Ham academy, moved to Leeds and represented England at U16, U18 and U19 level. You do not achieve that without having considerable ability.

But potential is one thing. At some point it has to translate into production, and for an attacking player the obvious currency is goals.

Which brings us to Adam Moseley.

Moseley came through at Runcorn Linnets, and football runs in the family. His father, Mike, was himself a striker who played for Runcorn AFC before going on to enjoy a productive spell at Witton Albion. Adam followed a similar route, coming through Runcorn’s youth system before progressing into senior football.

He had already developed a reputation for scoring goals before Latics came calling. During his time with the Education &  Semi Professional Football Academy he won the North Division Golden Boot twice, scoring 23 goals in his first season and 30 in his second, before progressing into Runcorn Linnets’ first team.

Wigan took notice when Moseley joined the U21s as a trialist early last season. He did not waste the opportunity, scoring 17 goals in his first 13 appearances. That was enough to persuade the club to sign him permanently in January.

The goals continued to come, and by the end of the season Moseley had scored 27 goals in 30 appearances for Latics’ U21s.

It would be wrong to suggest that 27 goals in 30 games automatically makes Moseley a future 20-goal League One striker. The step up is enormous. League One defenders are stronger, more experienced and far less likely to give a young striker the time and space he may have enjoyed at development level.

Moseley might not be ready. He might struggle with the physical demands. He might need another season to develop. All of those things are possible.But how are we going to know unless he is given the opportunity?

There was already an indication that Wigan saw something in him before Gary Caldwell took over. Ryan Lowe included Moseley in the first-team squad for the FA Cup third-round trip to Preston North End. Wearing the No. 46 shirt, he travelled with the senior side for the 1-0 victory at Deepdale.

He didn’t get on the pitch, but it was significant nonetheless. Lowe had decided that the young striker was worth bringing into the senior environment.

Then Caldwell took over.

Despite Moseley continuing to score heavily for the U21s, the first-team appearance never came. I am not suggesting Caldwell should have started him, nor that a young striker with no senior experience should suddenly have been expected to solve Wigan’s goalscoring problems. But surely there was an opportunity somewhere towards the end of last season to give him 15 or 20 minutes and see how he coped.

Moseley did get a start this season in the EFL Trophy against Aston Villa U21s, playing at centre-forward. It was not an especially eye-catching performance, although he was credited with a goal when a defender’s clearance rebounded off him. Interestingly, he made little attempt to celebrate the goal, which perhaps said more about the nature of it than anything else.

The important point is that Latics clearly see something in Moseley. They watched him as a trialist, saw him score 17 goals in 13 appearances, signed him permanently, watched him finish the season with 27 goals in 30 appearances and then decided he was worth keeping.

In June the club gave him a new contract, with the deal running until June 2027. Moseley was clearly pleased to stay and was quoted by the club as saying:

“I’m really pleased to have signed a new contract with the Club. It’s a place that I have enjoyed my football since joining last season, and now it’s time to develop further over the next year.

“Committing my future here was an easy decision for me – I’ve enjoyed every minute, and I’m grateful for the trust the Club has shown in me. I’m looking forward to what the future holds.”

Maybe Caldwell thinks he isn’t ready. That is perfectly reasonable. The manager sees him every day in training and knows far more about his physical development, his strengths and weaknesses than we do. There may be very good reasons why Moseley hasn’t yet been considered ready for League One.

One obvious question is whether he has fully made the transition from part-time football to the demands of full-time professional football. That alone could explain why Caldwell has been cautious. But it doesn’t change the fundamental point: the one thing we still don’t know is whether Moseley can score goals against League One defenders.

The club’s financial situation means that Latics have a limited budget. If you do not have the money for the finished article, you have to be prepared to develop your own. That doesn’t mean automatically promoting every youngster who scores goals at academy level. It means recognising when somebody is producing numbers that are difficult to ignore and being prepared to take a calculated gamble.

Moseley’s numbers are certainly difficult to ignore. Seventeen goals in 13 appearances as a Wigan trialist and 27 in 30 for the U21s is a remarkable record. Meanwhile, the established forwards have the senior experience, but their career EFL goalscoring figures hardly suggest that goals are guaranteed.

Nobody knows whether the 21 year-old Adam Moseley could be the answer. Perhaps Costelloe will finally click. Perhaps Perkins will fulfil the potential that took him into the England youth set-up. Perhaps Sze will prove that the faith shown in him with a new contract was justified.

Despite his indifferent performances Caldwell has shown faith in Perkins up to this point, starting each game in the centre forward position. He scored a goal from a rebound at Cambridge, but other than that has been unconvincing. Having given the player a two-year contract Caldwell has to give him the backing to succeed. However, if there is no improvement over the coming weeks and the team has not climbed up the table. Caldwell will need to take action.

Caldwell has also kept faith in Costelloe, despite his woeful scoring ratio last season. The player has looked better playing wide with Perkins in the middle. He works hard and shows glimpses of skill and vision. However, his finishing is well short of the level it should be.

If the goals don’t come, there will be a need to make changes in the strike force. Sze continues to show glimpses of quality, but struggles to impose himself on the game.

Adam Moseley has spent the last year doing the one thing Latics desperately need somebody to do: scoring goals. He has done it at every stage of his development, and they have clearly seen enough to keep him at the club.

Maybe he isn’t ready. Maybe he isn’t the answer. But after 27 goals in 30 games, he has surely earned the right to show whether he can make the step up.Give him some minutes. Let him experience the physicality of League One. Let him find out what he needs to improve, and let us find out whether those U21 goals were a sign of something more.

Because when you don’t have the money to buy the finished article, sometimes you have to take a chance on the unfinished one. With Wigan’s current strikers struggling to find the net and the club once again working within financial constraints, surely it is getting close to the time to find out what Adam Moseley can do.

After all, if you’re looking for a goalscoring striker and you don’t have the money to buy one, perhaps the first place to look is the one you’ve already got.

Wigan Athletic 2 Peterborough 0 – Latics show promise

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match reactions and tagged with , , , , , , , , ,

The opening day 3-1 victory over Northampton was an enjoyable occasion for Latics supporters. Ryan Lowe’s new team certainly showed promise for the season ahead.  However, it was followed by an abject defeat at Leyton Orient and an insipid League Cup win over League 2 Notts County.

Yesterday’s win over Peterborough once again suggested that Lowe’s Latics team have potential, albeit tempered by the fact that the visiting team’s starting lineup was inexperienced, their two oldest players being 25 years old, the average age being 23.

Players’ age stats courtesy of FotMob.com

It is dangerous to make predictions at this stage of the season based on performances and results. Wigan’s best performances so far have been against two teams whose so far have gained just one point between them. Moreover, Peterborough had more than 70% possession and were awarded 10 corners compared with Wigan’s 3. Sadly, for the visitors, they could not show a cutting edge to their finishing.

However, green shoots have appeared to suggest that Lowe’s Latics have potential. The wing backs, Joe Hungbo and Fraser Murray, were excellent yesterday, as they had been against Northampton. Left wing back is a position that Hungbo is growing in to, having played as an inverted right winger previously. His approach burns up a lot of energy: he was substituted after 72 minutes yesterday, after 67 minutes against Orient and 70 minutes against Northampton. Hungbo has already shown the signs of becoming an effective wing back, a key component in Lowe’s system.

Murray really looks the part in the right wing back position, despite playing mainly on the left for Kilmarnock. His run and cross for Christian Saydee’s opening headed goal was quite superb. Murray is physically fit, intelligent, has excellent vision and gets himself into good attacking positions. He complements his attacking skills with sound defence and a determination to succeed.

Wing back is arguably the most physically demanding position to play in. Lowe has been dealt a cruel blow with Isaac Mabaya’s serious injury. He needs an alternative on the right-hand side as a backup to Murray. He has K’Marni Miller as a possibility for left wing back when fully fit. Already having a squad that needs to be reduced in size for economic reasons he will face difficulties finding someone to replace Mabaya.

Although they had such little possession Latics did create opportunities to increase their lead. However, the substitution of the defensively strong Luke Robinson for Hungbo, rather than Jonny Smith, signalled the manager’s intention of closing down the game. Peterborough did get into good positions around Wigan’s penalty area although they squandered their opportunities.

Another excellent performer yesterday was Christian Saydee. Not only was he in the right place to score the opening goal, but he had a fine all-round game. Saydee is not only physically very strong but has good skill on the ground, showing vision in finding teammates when under pressure. He is only 23 years old and looks like a bargain signing. Goalscoring is the side of his game that he really needs to work on.  His goal yesterday will do him a world of good.

Latics face trips to Luton and Rotherham this week. Each game will provide a stern test to Lowe’s squad which shows promise but still has a long way to go to prove itself as a contender in the upper reaches of the table.

Wigan Athletic 1 Notts County 0: disjointed Latics limp to victory

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match reactions and tagged with , , , , , , ,

Wigan Athletic’s recent record in the Football League Cup has been far from impressive. In fact, this is the first time in the last four years that they have qualified for the second round.

“I want to go as far as we can” was Ryan Lowe’s prior comment on the club’s ambitions in the competition, but on the basis of this performance they might not even go beyond the second round. Good football was in short supply in this match for the sparse crowd that attended.

Lowe sprung a surprise in his starting lineup with Jensen Weir at right centre back, Luke Robinson coming in on the left to join Jason Kerr in centre of the back three. Callum Wright and Ryan Trevitt started in central midfield, with Tobias Brenan in the #6 role behind them. Isaac Abaya and Joe Hungbo were the wing backs, Maleace Asamoah and Paul Mullin the twin strikers.

Latics go off to an early lead after 10 minutes, Mullin blasting home a soft penalty awarded after Asamoah went down in the box. However, their play that followed was cumbersome and disjointed. There was certainly effort from the players but little cohesion, the opposition dominating possession.

Injuries have been a major problem in recent years for Latics and they continue to be so. A serious-looking leg injury to Mabaya saw him stretchered off after 29 minutes, Fraser Murray replacing him. Although Lowe had made six changes in this starting lineup the faces of Joe Adams, Baba Adeeko, Callum McManaman, K’Marni Miller, Matt Smith, Jonny Smith and Chris Sze have not been seen since the season-proper started. We await word on the injury to Jamie Carragher at Leyton on Saturday.

A key feature of that promising season start against Northampton was the effectiveness of the wing backs. However, with them being neutralised at Leyton and in this game, there has been reduced creativity. Murray’s sparkling debut against Northampton was a joy to watch, but the realities of playing in League 1 mean he could come in for some heavy marking by opposition defences as the season progresses. Moreover, Mabaya’s injury leaves Lowe short of options at right wing back.

Notts County enjoyed 64% of the possession in this game, with Latics struggling to find their men with their passes. They were fortunate that the visitors could not translate their possession into goals, although Notts could count themselves unlucky in the closing minutes as Sam Tickle and a resolute back three were key in putting their bodies on the line to keep their team ahead.

With the 3-1-4-2 formation and the influx of new players, Latics were always going to need time to adjust and gel as a unit in early season. The fine display against a Northampton side possibly heading towards the bottom of the table may seem like a false dawn after what we have seen since then. However, there is enough talent and experience in the squad to ensure a finish in the top ten of League 1.

In the meantime, one can only hope that Lowe can provide us with a passing game that can match the kind of effort that he expects from his players. A return for Matt Smith could be the kind of catalyst that is needed to cut down on wasted long passes and ensure a better build-up from defence.

Leyton Orient 2 Wigan Athletic 0: low-energy Latics fall to defeat

Posted by JJ (Tony) in Match reactions and tagged with , , , , , , , ,

“We didn’t compete enough – we’ll address it on Monday morning, but the fact of the matter is, if you don’t compete, you’re not going to win.”

So said Ryan Lowe following an abject performance by his team.

Wigan’s performance was predictably dire. Predictable because Orient were wounded after losing their opening game, and Latics were probably made to look a bit better than they are against Northampton. The Carragher injury probem didn’t help. It was a bit if a nightmare for Sessegnon too.

Orient were far superior on the day. Lots of professional fouls to interrupt Latics, but with a fluid and dangerous front four. The Lowe version of hoofball – pass it back to Tickle so he can punt it as long as he can – will be frustrating against decent teams that can cope with it. But it’s percentage football and it could be enough to get Latics in contention for playoffs.

In January 2007 Denny Landzaat made a memorable comment reported by the Dutch press about Latics’ style of football under Steve Bruce:

 “Some matches the long ball is the only kind we play… It quickly turns into lottery football… I often think that as I’m not getting the ball played to me, I might as well run to get on the end of it when it drops from the sky.”

The ball went over the heads of Wigan’s central midfielders yesterday too. The 19-year-old Tobias Brenan had made a promising debut against Northampton, but looked a passenger in the first half. It would be fascinating to see him in a more possession-based team because he looks skilful. Moreover, most of the balls that had reached Dara Costelloe and Christian Saydee up front could be described as “hoofballs”, as opposed to accurately aimed long balls.

Jamie Carragher’s knee injury after four minutes of play was a bitter blow for Lowe. Already deprived of the combative Will Aimson through suspension the manager had to resort to a back three that had not previously played together as a unit. Jon Melliish was moved to left centre back, with the hapless Sessegnon moved to the right. Mellish did not perform at all badly and he showed an energy that many of his teammates were devoid of on the day. New signing Morgan Fox was not on the bench yesterday but will stake a strong claim to the left central defensive possession when fully fit.

Lowe has an opportunity to give other members of his squad a try in Tuesday’s Carabao Cup game at home to Notts County. He will be looking to re-energise his team for Saturday’s League 1 home tie against Peterborough.

Stats courtesy of WhoScored.com