Feels like we’re asking him to play a role that just doesn’t suit his strengths. He’s not a natural focal point — the first touch under pressure and aerial presence aren’t really there for a central striker. What he does offer is pace, work rate, and willingness to track back, which makes way more sense for a wide forward.
You notice he looks far more dangerous when he’s facing the game and attacking space instead of wrestling centre-backs with his back to goal. Even a quick look at his game-by-game numbers on Cafescore kind of backs that up. We’d probably get more out of him if we stopped forcing him into the No.9 role.
