The issues with this is Wilf has no interest in creating chances for others we wants goals himself and as other have said he wastes way too much.

Olise wants to come inside all the time and being one footed is not good they need to work on that and teach him to play the other side also defend which it looks like the defensive side he has picked up some. (He's young has lots of room to develop)

Eze is playing almost as deep play maker how can you expect hi to score and the other thing other players have issues scoring because of service this guy is one who is to supply it now.

No to 4-4-2

We play better with 3 up top and they switch around and tuck in when defending.

This is what Ed does a lot of and people moan about him yet he is going a lot work rate wise when really we need him in the box with others providing service.

Wilf is very lazy now you can see he is set in his ways and is not a CF or striker last night showed this he had 4-5 very good chances taking only 1, he cant battle for the ball or hold it no effort to close people down.

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Good point well made, but as I understand it your sums presume (or hope!?) that Eduoard or Mateta will get 15-odd goals between them if one or other plays up front all year (or 7 or 8 each if they are rotated), and that Zaha will get roughly the same number of goals from the wing as he did last year, and finally, that he'd get no more than that if played up front. If all those things pan out then we are, as you say, missing some 15 goals in the front line, and a new winger would have to find them.

As I say, I'd expect Olise to find another six to eight goals this season, at least. He is developing all the time, and needs to have appropriate expectations placed on his shoulders as part of that. I'd also expect Wilf, if played up front, to get at least another two or three goals than if he played on the wing (accepting that his goals return is high for a winger). That leaves the new winger with four or five to find, which doesn't seem too much to hope for. I'd hope Eze matches Gallagher's goals tally.

Moreover, though the numbers can tell a story, they don't tell the whole story, and certainly can't tell us the future. Wilf, for his faults, is a potential menace to any defence in the world. Even top sides will keep an extra player back to offset his threat, or drop off a few yards to deny him the kind of space he took advantage of last night. That makes space for the likes of Eze and Olise, and discourages opponents from pressing us fully. The threat of Zaha alone, in comparison to Edouard or Mateta, could make a beneficial tactical difference to the shape of our games, reducing the time we spend fully under the cosh, and increasing our possession foothold in the match. It's hard to equate that to a number of goals or points lost or gained.

Another thing to consider is the effect of better quality individuals on their team mates. Once Eze slipped past Alexander-Arnold and Fabinho last night, Zaha saw the opportunity to run in behind far sooner, and timed the run far better, than I would expect Mateta or Edouard to. That made Eze's excellent pass possible. From there on in, Zaha did what nobody else we have could do. It was an example of a goal that just doesn't get scored with lesser quality players.

When at Reading, Olise regularly played defence-splitting passes just like Eze's, and though this is of course a higher league I think both these young creative talents have, in addition to their dribbling skills, the potential to deliver incisive forward passes if the forward is bright enough and on the move. Awareness and movement are signs of quality, and that really is my argument - get the best quality players in the side somehow, even if it means a different shape or style, and then we'll have a better chance.

We have spent good money on Mateta and Edouard,they are considered Centr Forwards,so leave Wilf on the wing and let the other two reveal whether they are good enough.

I think it worth asking the question however of whether you wanted it to be Wilf, JPM, Edouard or Ayew on the receiving end??

Easy for me to say now but I'm glad it was who it was.

Now Zaha's got a bit of green grass ahead of him here... and finds Ambrose... not a bad effort!!!!

You do realise you've just described Thierry Henry to a tee before Wenger got his hands on him. He was a moody right winger capable of scoring a goal. Nothing more. Then he got turned into the best centre forward in PL history and no one saw that coming.

What Vieira's doing with Wilf isn't pulling something out of thin air; its history he saw first-hand and he sees an opportunity to repeat it. And I think he might be right to do so.

Edited by sydtheeagle (16 Aug 2022 7.26pm)

Sydenham by birth. Selhurst by the Grace of God.

Disagree with this. Wilf doesn't do much with space anymore. He's lost pace and looks hesitant to really run and people anymore. Where he's still world-class though is his ability in tight spaces, little turns, tricks to buy himself an inch of space then get a shot away.

I remember years ago Dougie saying Wilf could well be the 20 goal a season striker we've been looking for. Lots of time has passed since then...but I still think he could have been / could still be.