People often refer back to Dave Thorson’s oft-misquoted missive that “Offense sells tickets, defense wins championships“, or a version of that, when discussing the merits of having a good striker versus a solid defence in football.
It is true that you need to win games by tucking away your chances, but it’s no good doing that if you are haemorrhaging goals at the back – ask West Brom fans and they will tell you. In a nutshell, you buy a striker to score the goals that win you games; you have a solid defensive unit that keeps that advantage and wins you promotion.
So, with Aston Villa fans getting rightly excited at the prospect of playing in next season’s Premier League, they must also be a little worried about where the goals will be coming from. It is looking increasingly likely that Chelsea will hold on to the services of the uber-talented Tammy Abraham, their hand forced by a likely two-window transfer ban.
Last season Abraham ran riot for Villa in the Championship, scoring 25 goals in 37 games to spearhead their promotion to English football’s top-tier competition. With Chelsea holding on to Abraham, and with the hotshot striker having said goodbye, thoughts must turn to elsewhere for how to get those all important goals.
Not all is lost though, for Villa have been linked to 11-cap Uruguayan youngster Maxi Gomez, an out-and-out striker who currently plies his trade in Spain’s LaLiga with Celta Vigo. Last season the 22-year-old scored 13 goals and provided five assists in 35 games.
So, the question remains is whether or not Maxi Gomez is both a suitable and viable option for Villa to consider as they look to consolidate a place in the Premier League.
Opinion
It’s always a gamble taking on a player that has scored a hatful in a lower league and expecting an instant repeat higher up the football ladder. 25 goals in the Sky Bet Championship from Tammy Abraham doesn’t automatically translate to 25 goals in the Premier League. In fact, in 33 Premier League games (33 on loan at Swansea), Abraham has scored just five times and provided two assists.
Gomez though, he’s scored 13 in last season’s LaLiga competition, and that’s 13 goals in a top-tier competition against some quality sides. It forms part of a haul of 31 goals and 10 assists in 71 games in Spain’s top league. He was also a regular scorer in Uruguay’s top competition, although the Primera Division isn’t as strong as LaLiga.
On paper you’d have to say that Gomez could cut it in the Premier League, and in truth he probably could. However, it is paper of a different kind, £35million, that could be the deciding factor as to whether Villa take the plunge and decided to replace Tammy Abraham with some Uruguayan firepower.
