Daizen Maeda

Is it just me or is that man getting more handsome by the minute? Save some for the rest of us mate.

 

Should have had a couple today..

Unusually looked half a yard off it..

 

Actually reminded me of an early days Daizen performance. His defensive work and tracking was excellent. Should have had a couple of goals though.

 

He is so much better through the middle.

 

Got an assist atleast

 

He had a very, very poor end to the season. Duff pre-season, and looked way off it today.

Need him to snap out of it quick, and hope it wasn't just a purple patch he had from January to April last season.

 

Hes by a mile our best CF but stuck out wide.

 

Not his best performance, but possibly should have had more than one assist if Idah and Yang were more alert.

 

His 2 one on one's show why I don't want him to play as striker for us... Great spell last year but never confident with him to finish

 

We don't really ever score many of those types of goals though or even get those type of chances often.

His bread and butter is pouncing on tap ins and getting in front of people for headers and being on the move for the break of the ball in the box and that, he scores loads of those type of strikers goals just cause his style of being clever and quick and always on the move. Even when we play him on the wing thats the only type of goals he ever scores.

He's never scored like Kuhn type goals or Jota who you'd think of cutting in and finishing or are better one on one with a keeper.

 

Somethings never change.

Still doesn't suit being a winger against teams who come and park the bus.

The sooner we sign two creative wingers and get him back up front the better

 

Madness that we’ve nobody else to slot in at LW and let him play through the middle! Utter insanity.

 

Totally agree with this. Always maintained his best position is on the left. Only reason he got a run through the middle is because we sold Kyogo without replacing him and Idah was the alternative. His defensive work down the left side is so important as well. We absolutely should be trying to recruit another striker and be keeping Daizen on the left.

 

In Europe hes great as a winger. Domestically hes not.

In Europe where we don't have 85% of possession or where there is far more spce in behind hes an ideal winger but domestically when there isn't space and we need a Jota type to create something against a packed defence id rather he was in the middle of the box to finish them.

Aye he scored more goals as a winger last season, mainly bcoz he played 75% of the games there but his goals to mins ratio as a striker was far better

It's aslo worth remembering a lot of those goals as a winger came while playing with Kyogo, a really clever striker with intelligent movement. Not the useless lump of wood who's currently playing now.

 

He needs support in attack.

As brilliant as he was last season, I don’t think we can rely on his output, in terms of numbers, being replicated this year.

I can’t help but feel that few month spell at the start of 2025 was somewhat of a purple patch where it felt like almost everything he hit went in. His finishing still leaves a lot to be desired and he’s always been quite hit and miss in terms of delivery into the box.

We desperately need a quality, reliable finisher and a wide player with genuine creativity. Maeda will always give us the pace, energy, pressing and threat in behind.

On the ball, I don’t think he should be the “main man” of our attack.

 

I think he’s much more suited to playing as a centre forward, although he does seem to have clocked out just to drive the ball low and hard with his left foot once he is by the full back.