Alex thinks the Royals could do with additional deeper-lying and advanced midfield options.
Football’s a funny old game really, isn’t it? This time last year, we were upset at the relegation to League One, the first time we had been in such a seemingly lowly division for 20-odd years. And now, here we are, relieved to have been able to even stay in it.
However, stay in it we have managed to do, and now we need to start thinking ahead to next year and building on our strong finish. New owners are hopefully on their way soon, but it’s business as usual from a transfer perspective: we need to keep the wallet closed and operate in strict financial conditions with the wages that we can offer.
Having already looked at the defence, in this article attention turns to the midfield.
I’ve broken the midfield down into two parts: defensive midfield and attacking midfield. In our 4-2-3-1 system this would be one of the two players who form part of the “2” for the defensive midfield and the central player in the “3” of the attack. For the 4-1-4-1, defensive midfield would be the “1” between the lines and attacking midfield would be one of the central players in the last line of “4”.
I didn’t include wingers here, as they are more part of the attack than the midfield, while our attacking midfielders often will drop back and support the central midfield in the 4-2-3-1 and naturally form part of the central midfield pairing in the 4-1-4-1.
Effectively, from what I can see, we need a true defensive midfielder to ease the pressure on Michael Craig and the defensive burdens on Charlie Savage and Lewis Wing in particular, and we really need someone who can provide a secondary option for Harvey Knibbs. We seem pretty well covered for central midfielders who operate as an “8”, so I don’t see any need to recruit for this particular midfield role.
A curious role here. Technically, we only really have one defined defensive midfielder who plays as a true “6” and that’s Michael Craig. But he’s a bit rough around the edges and understandably so for a 20-year-old who’s only just broken through to senior football.
Wing and Savage have done well in this role but I see them more as “deep-lying 8s” than true defensive “6s”, as evidenced in their success as a double pivot in the 4-2-3-1 system where defensive responsibility can be shared.
Maybe we still need ourselves our own N’Golo Kante. Jack Senga-Ngoyi seems the most likely from the academy who can make this step up. He’s a defensive midfielder by nature, has experience playing first-team senior football in a physical league (Ayr United, Scottish Championship) and is a regular for Noel Hunt’s side. As well as this, he offers something we don’t necessarily have an abundance of in midfield: height. He’s a physical presence at 6´2”. Savage, Craig, Ben Elliott and Tivonge Rushesha are all 6´0” or under.
Speaking of Rushesha, he’s also an option. I think he’s probably more of an 8, with energy to burn, and is likely to be more useful a bit further up the pitch. However, it’s worth noting that he is already on the edges of the first team so is likely to be in the minds of the coaching staff as they plan for how to utilise him next season – if his contract is extended.
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