For a long time the footballing world have been judging strikers and players in general for what they can bring to a team, but can anyone pinpoint the answer?
Fernando Torres has come under fire under recent seasons since his £50 million pound move from Liverpool. Understandably due to his first season and a half when he managed to only produce 12 goals, receiving abuse and scrutiny from both his own fans and opposition, although most of the opposition fans were a lot happier to see him on the pitch than Chelsea fans.
This season however there have been multiple glimpses of Torres former self, the player that Chelsea were willing to pay the hefty price tag for. Finishing the season with 22 goals in all competitions, though considering this was Chelsea’s longest season spanning over 69 matches where Torres played in 64 of them. But can you call this an unsuccessful season?
Put it into perspective, Manchester City strikers Carlos Tevez and Sergio Aguero both scored 17 goals throughout the season admittedly from just 39 matches, another striker who failed to match Torres ‘heights’ this season was Manchester United’s Wayne Rooney who only managed 16. Yes it is possible to say that Torres played nearly double of the strikers I have named but isn’t that a hindrance? Surely playing more matches would tire you out more which would make it harder to perform to your highest levels, I know it would hinder my performances.
Other fans and critics have said so what he scored 22 goals, only 8 of these were in the league, which yes it is a pitiful showing, but I still feel that he is constantly improving every season, first season scored 1, next it was 11 and now 22, why not give him the chance to improve on that? Whose to say he won’t get 30 next season? With more in the league rather than in Europe.
With players like Danny Welbeck receiving plaudits come the end of the season when as a striker he only managed 2 goals in 39 matches. How can you applaud a player who only found the net twice yet scrutinise one who found it 22 times? Surely that doesn’t make sense, Torres is judged on his goals yet Welbeck is judged on how he holds up the ball and defends. As a fan I can honestly say that one thing Torres is better at since joining the Blues is defending, I’ve often joked about moving him to midfield because of this, how can you judge one striker by one thing and then another by something completely different? Surely they should all be judged on the same attributes.
Another example is Demba Ba, signed in January by Chelsea from Newcastle. Ba has ended the season with only 6 goals in 22 matches, so Chelsea need a prolific striker, but why is there more talk of getting rid of Torres? I’ve watched Ba multiple times this season and each match he is getting worse, where Torres is improving Ba is getting worse. When you put into perspective that Ba scored three of his 6 goals in one match that means he has scored 3 goals in 21 matches, which is an average of 1 goal every 7 matches, this is not the sort of record a striker playing for a title challenging team should have, Torres manages a goal just under every 3 matches.
One man which Chelsea need to bring back and give a chance is Romelu Lukaku. The young Belgian has had a prolific season whilst on loan at West Brom, managing to bag 17 goals in the league, a staggering 9 more than Chelsea’s number 9 and 15 more than their number 29. Once again it comes down to the fact that Lukaku has received plaudits from everywhere, which he rightly deserves, but Torres scored more in all competitions than Lukaku, so why the boo-boys? Maybe it’s just down to the price tag on his head.
All in all I believe that as a striker, yes they should be judged by their goal scoring ability, as there is no point in having a striker that can’t score is there? But at the same time if you judge one by his ability to score then you should judge them all on that same ability, by all means judge them based on other attributes such as being able to hold up the ball, but then once again you have to judge them all on this not just one or two.
57 thoughts on “Can you judge a striker only by his goals?”
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There is no basis to judge Lukaku goals and those of Torres.Lukaku was playing only EPL Whereas Torres was playing in all competitions and getting tired.To compare their number of EPL goals is to commit Football Blunder.Ask your self why did Arsanal surddenly find themslves at No 4?? The reason was that they dropped out early in all competions and focused on EPL only!!!
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you just explained everything i have been trying to say on social networking sites all the time. when chelsea fans say torres scored mpre goals then rooney and others we arent saying torres is better then them at the moment but we are saying he doesnt deserve all those criticism. and i think the reason why torres is critized is due to his fantastic goal scoring past. if ba had scored 22 goals in place of torres playing 64 matches everyonee would applaud him. the expectation on el nino is too high. and people are just looking at his goal stats and ignoring all his other attribute. if the midfielders are scoring so many goals then the striker must have done aomeghing right to create that space. i hope he stays in chelsea and scores many more goals next season.
KTBFFH
Just to remind u that BA has 19/43games and 23/65games…so do your maths and tell me who is the worst even if i didn’t post the match they started
Thqnk god for a sensible article on Torres. Btw in his first full season he scored 12 goals and 12 assists and was the third highest contributer to goals only behind Mata and Lamps.. but dont worry.. ppl with little knowledge of football will still not understand it.
e.g. *cough* gerrycrissandy17 *cough*
Hahaha
Lol
you just proved what a Torres fan boy you are, but here is a thing Ba wasn’t given a decent enough chance he was in and out of the side behind Torres, who at times was just miserable figure on the pitch i.e against Liverpool, Man city,Praga but just to name a few. Scoring in the europa league doesn’t constitude him a good striker again he has to do at the highest level and that is the epl and champions league, doesn’t he have 1 goal in the champions league and it was a gift if I remember well, he has 7 in the epl. These are the stats of our main striker, shameful we didn’t buy in midfield in Torres we bought goals, goals win matches. We’ve had to rely on our midfield for goals tragic I tell you. He has to go and I know some fan boys are going to call me ‘plastic’ insult me and that stupid shit but go ahead, I support and love Chelsea Football Club, do not need to justify myself to anyone but Torres is simply not good for the club. With him as our striker we effectively have 6 midfielders, sometimes he doesn’t even show up, he hides behind defenders, Rafa come get your boy!!!!
but wasnt torres behind drogba in his first season?? he didnt do well and received a lot of bullshit by fans and the same happens to BA and everyone is still giving torres a hard time? that doesnt make sense
Not a fanboy but we have all seen Ba and Torres at there best for different clubs, and Torres at his half best is better than Ba at his best, I’m a Chelsea season ticket holder and have seen Ba play multiple times this season and he is shockingly poor, when he first joined he had an immediate impact which I liked but as I said he has only got worse since, not saying Torres is great at all I don’t think he is a top striker anymore but what I do think is to say he had a shit season, it wasn’t his best but he still scored, if he hadn’t scored in that Europa league final with the way we were playing up until that point I don’t think we would have won, he scored important goals in Europe this season and because of that(not the only reason but he is one of) we won the Europa league. All I am saying is I would rather have Torres than Ba. Which is a fair comment and is the opinion I know of many at the bridge. As I mentioned I would rather have Lukaku starting but all I said is if we are going to give either of those strikers another chance I would pick Torres over Ba. Okay and using your argument you can’t compare Bale to Messi because they play different positions, Bale left flank and Messi more of a striker role, but I also compared him to Aguero and Tevez who did play through the middle.
Saying you’re a season tickey holder doesn’t prove your opinins.
Messi is more striker role?
Do you even know the difference between forward and striker. Google it
Never said it proves my opinion once again it is my opinion which I am entitled to, just like your entitled to yours, difference is I’m Not saying your wrong just saying in my opinion I feel differently. And what I mean is I have witness Ba on a weekly basis perform to a low standard and have spoken with other fans in the ground who all feel Ba is a well below par signing. And Messi is a forwarding my eyes what I said was Rooney is known as a forward yes? His record was average this season, to which someone replied but Rooney doesn’t play up front so you can’t compare, so I said how can u compare bale and Messi when they don’t play same position either….
FFS, I didn’t mention Messi and Bale at all……..
Rooney was average because he used to play as striker, and now United have RvP which is better choice.
And that’s why Rooney handed his transfer request, he wasn’t enjoying playing on midfield.
He deserved credits for his EL final goal, okay. But what about his miss in CWC final? Cost us the trophy and the the badge
I’m talking about his overalk appearance, and he is shit
He has 8 BPL goals and 3 in champions league. Lets go ahead and get our facts straight before attempting to make a point. You may not think he’s worth being on the team but he wears Chelsea blue. So if you’re a fan you should support him.
Torres is over paid and just isn’t a quality player anymore, Ba never was. Hes just a good striker. BTW : most games Ba was substituted in for Torres in the 70th minute so you cant compare the number of games Ba has played
How old are you Yasho? Your view is good.
And Torres has never been substituted? So your also saying Ba should’ve been left on for full match even if he has been terrible? I can’t remember seeing Ba play brilliant and then be substituted the whole point of substitutions is to remove players who haven’t performed or are tired or on a yellow card for a fresh face who could change the game, if Ba is not affecting the game in a positive way why shouldn’t he be taken off? He isn’t a quality player anymore but have I once said he is? But he is still better than Ba. Simply put.
Which one are you of the avi ? Can understand your biased opinions of Torres if you’re the girl
Not biased at all I don’t personally feel Torres is quality as I have said, all I have said is I personally feel if we are going to get rid of one its Ba because he was average for Newcastle and Newcastle were battling relegation, people say Torres living off past great moments, but so is Ba is he not? Because Ba has not been impressive at all except for his first match. And very funny but no I’m not the girl.
Newcastle was fighting for relegation after his leaving though.. Average? He scored more than your lovely blonde cunt in first half of the seson, with shit midfielders in newcastle
Rooney was playing more as AMF last season. And Welbeck is more left winger. Both of them can’t be compared to almighty Torres. Compare him with RVP, both are lone striker
Ba has only been here for half the season. If you all have a faith in torres after 2 and half seasons, why can’t you have it to Ba?
I am trying to be unbiased, but this blonde is totally crap. CRAP
Oh and you want to compare Torres and Ba, compare both in second half season of Premier League, where both played in it. If only Ba wasn’t cup tied for EL, he would score more
How do you know that? If you watch Ba play he is club footed, first touch awful,vision awful, ability to hold up play awful. This is a view shared by multiple season ticket holders at the bridge not just mine. So to say he would have scored more is impossible to tell
I personally think you have a vendetta against Ba I think he has been half decend, the games against United he dragged their defence all over the place, yes he has missed oppotunities one would find hard to miss but Torres has missed worse. Torres got 2 and a half years to prove his worth, he still hasn’t done it nor will he ever, thats my opinion he is passed it time to cash in now and replace the goals we are missing in someone else, give Ba a run in the team and see if he doesn’t improve, playing one game and then sitting on the bench for 3 games doesn’t let him build momemtum and I think you wrong Torres wasn’t substitited in some games even if he was awful i.e the liverpool game totally not there but he played the whole match to my amusement and shock. Is Torres better than Ba? i’m not convinced he is, he is living on his past glories and thats the end of it.
He is better on positioning than Torres. I’m not saying Ba is world class, but he was decent few months ago for Newcastle, give him ime to adapt
Transvestite alert!!!! Here comes candy bar with his/her personal vendetta against Torres… using abuses for fellow fans and players just confirms ur level of immaturity.
sell the two of them…….. With them next season we will be fighting for champions league play off like we did this season. Fuck them.
If we sell both of them, we have only Lukaku as striker in our squad, and he says he want another year on loan. So we have 0 striker, and have to buy about 2 or 3 in transfer window? Hell no
And the title is ridiculous to be honest. Sorry for the writer
It’s like saying “Can we judge a goal keeper by his saves?” or a defender by his tackles”
A striker is hired to score goals, that’s why he is up there near the opponent’s goal.
So why was Welbeck nominated for young player of the year? Because he never scored….
And if you read the final paragraph I have said a striker should be judged by there goals but if you judge one that way you must judge them all the same way.
Have you read mine “why we should sell torres”? i suggest you read if you have not
I have read it and once again it is your opinion which you are entitled to, but that doesn’t mean your opinion is right does it? Everyone is entitled to there own opinions, your point is strikers are bought for their goals, I agree so why is Ba better when he scored less than half of what Torres scored?
Oh don’t worry Nathan. Y we shud sell Torres is one of the worst articles ever..
you two have been debating a lot… here is a complete ratings of the season of chelsea… have a look at it and it may help in deciding about torres.
http://www.weaintgotnohistory.com/2013/5/30/4371460/wagnh-2012-13-chelsea-fc-season-community-player-ratings
Ba is worst compared to torres he got several chances to score but he couldnt convert i think we have to sell or loan him since Andre Schurrle is ours now n Lukaku is back n snatch Lewandowski from Bayern arms n buy another creativity midfielder ISCO from Malaga. Under special one we will won treble
Look, if you don’t agree with an article you can either respectively put why you don’t or give the author constructive criticism. Abusing @nathan1310 makes zero sense. I think your article was great and its exactly what I keep saying. You cant just look at goals. You have to look at all aspect of the player, and in this way Torres is much better than Ba.
@gerrycrissandy17, I don’t care who you like or don’t like on the team, but to disrespect your own player so publicly is disgusting and not the behaviour of a fan, Chelsea or otherwise. I did not like Ba at all on Newcastle but you better believe as soon as he puts that Blue on I cheer him on through all his misses and hits. That’s what a fan does.
finally, someone with a working brain. you don’t have to display immaturity or your high stupidity with comments or stoop low (that’s if u got high standards) to insult other just cause they don’t agree with ur view. through hits n misses, ur job is to cheer to the end: that’s what a real fan does. Not openly hate on a player or insult other fans.
You are entitled to ur view as others are. it not a necessity to like ur writes. Take criticisms with balls (sins u kip calling everyone a girl). @gerrycrissandy17, I’m sure u are one of those grp of fans benitez regarded as “plastic fans”. you arnt behaving like a writer of this blog, i wonder how u got hired with your crap articles and your immature behaviour. you are slowly creating a reputation a nuisance everyone should ignore. Grow up!
true, i don’t have good personality. I take the critizm, but please back your critizm with something make sense.
And I want the best for the club I support. 13 years old fans just cheers the team, mature fans think about the club’s future. OK mr or ms proper fan?
Ok, you’ve completely missed my point. Let me break it down into simpler terms.
Do not insult your players mindlessly. Yes, it is important to look to the future, but they are our present and they are Chelsea. Therefore, as a fan you need to cheer them on.
If they don’t fit into the future of Chelsea say so and say your reason. Never be so disrespectful to a player that has contributed to Chelsea’s success. NEVER.
Oh and its Ms Proper Fan. So feel free to ignore me since I fall into the category of ‘girl or gay’, and apparently have a worthless opinion.
OK then since some of the fans often insult Benayoun and Malouda..
I respect girl and gay, I just say most of Torres’ fans are girls and gays.
Yeah and people steal. Doesn’t make it right just because others do it.
Do you? Definitely doesn’t seem so if you’re using being a girl or gay and ammunition to try insulting someone.
Oh and the Anonymous comment was from me, just forgot to write my name.
if i remember correctly you once critisized chelsea success in the Europa league.. Infact u stated it was a losers competition and you said it should not be considered as a success! Now here you r talkin abt how Torres 22 (8 of those in your losers competition which you said shud not be considered successfull) has had a good season. Fact is Torres has been decent but not good enuf. If he scored more in the league or cl we wud hve had a different season. This is probably the best he can produce and i doubt he’ll get better. Ba has had only 5mnths with the team whilst torres 2 and a half years so pliz stop comparing the 2. Lukaku shud return and i hope he can lead the team.
OK Joe, you understand about 2nd rate competition (EL)
I can’t agree when people say a striker has to be judged only from his goals,especially at Chelsea. You can say that about Man United and their strikers. They’re a direct team relying on crosses and early long balls mostly. That’s not us. We were that though with Drogba under Mourinho and those who replaced the latter.
Look at Bayern,the striker doesn’t get all the goals. Robben,Muller,Ribery etc all score goals and it’s pretty much the same with Chelsea who has Hazard,Mata,Lampard etc. Except,Bayern has a matured team.
I stand by my opinion that Torres must stay. He is a ball playing striker and he is a senior member of this young improving squad. It’s all depends on Mourinho though. Will he keep this side playing attractive football or will we see his usual direct style.
Some just don’t see what Torres brings to the field. He’s completely different from Ba. The Senegalese is the type who would just stay up top and hold the ball up,turn and shoot. I love one of the comments here lol Ba is club footed. I don’t know what he or she meant by that but from my understanding,it means Ba just swing his leg and hope it’s on target. How many times have we seen his shots leaving the atmosphere? Other than holding the ball up or being a good acrobat,Ba does nothing else. Torres tracks back,goes wide to stretch defenses,has a decent cross,assist others who’s in a better position and you rarely see his shots leave for Mars.
Thank you… Zane and eniola are one of the few ppl whose posts I love to read.. thats what is called having a football brain… Ba deserves more time… But saying that Torres is shit and that Ba is better than Torres is a clear lack of footballing knowledge on the person’s part.
Bayern Striker doesn’t score?
In Bundes Liga,
Mario Mandzukic 15 goals in 22 games he started.
Mario Gomez 11 goals from 9 games he started.
Claudio Pizarro 6 goals in 7 games he started.
Before you try to outsmart me with your unbelieveable opinions, check it back, OK?
Torres crosses and passes? why doesn’t him play as winger? I need shoots from strikers. Yeag I rarely see his sots leave for Mars. I rarely see him shooting too
Did I say Bayern’s strikers don’t score? Read my comment again girl.
Now many won’t agree, but I think our midfield, especially Mata is the reason why our strikers fared poorly this season. I feel Torres and Ba didn’t thrive because of our system of attacking and our attacking midfield trio. We may think we played possession football this season, but in the end we just play a slower version of what Mou left behind. The attacking style we played still requires a Drogba for it to work. Under RDM, we were getting close to attractive possession football, and thanks to Torres who was shit then and a slow defense, RDM was sacked for poor results. Under Rafa, we just passed and passed and passed, then either we lost possession or didn’t know what to do and played a speculative pass (a slower stupider version of what Mou taught us) Most of our goals were either set pieces or moments of brilliance from the midfielders. Rafa’s tactics didn’t translate to Torres or Ba goals because they aren’t Drogbas. Ba likes the midfield to do the hardwork, then pass to him to finish. Torres 1.0 likes to get the pass on the run, beat his man and score. Torres 1.0 became Torres 2.0 to try and cope in CFC. Torres 2.0 tried, but he could never have the required Drogba strength which was required to destroy defenders after receiving the ball in midfield. Mata is great, but he is reluctant to give a killer pass to anything that isn’t Hazard, Ramires or Lampard. His main target should be His striker and most times when the striker is ready, Mata either refuses to play the through ball, or plays it too late. As for our wingers, their crosses were generally poor and on the air, Ba or Torres will never have Drogba’s aerial dominance so, why the fuck?
I understand your points, true we’re not good on crossing.
But, Mata and Hazard have the amazing number of assists.
And have a look again number of chance they created
I think our problem is we hang too much on Mata-Hazard. If one of them or both is not on the pitch, we’re shit team
Mata and Hazard had awesome seasons, I will be foolish to criticize them blindly. Not only were we shit without them, as you said, but they seemed not to have faith in our strikers’ ability to score (Torres especially) and so didn’t want to give them the ball
This is fucking disgrace.
1. when did Demba BA scores 3goals in blue shirt? before typing shit make a decent research
2. How can Chelsea win EPL with a CF who his best scoring number is 8. most of Torres goals are against weaker teams. when the last time did Torres scores against MAN UTD,.SPURS,….
3. BA has been there for 5 months and in 22 games he scores 6 goals. sorry tell me how did Torres scores in his first time at the club
4. And you trying to say that Torres is better than Aguero,Rooney,Teves…..? bullshit most of them have been out for long due to injury .this’s the most stupid article I’ve ever read. admin thanks for wasting my time
I strongly believe that Torres has already passed his prime, he never get back to his lethal form, so should go for another striker………………Ba should be given this season to prove him, if he can’t satisfy, then he also should be sold.
Torres did not perform that bad this season but it is not good enough either for Chelsea level. I believe that Lukaku will perform better than Torres or Ba. He is big, strong, in the mould of Drogba. I hope that Mourinho will give him a chance and will improve him a lot
giv toress one last chanc thats ol wat hiz try 2say through out dic whole season…….. 1 LAST CHANcE