What is wrong with Hooper?

Before I start, this is NOT a thread slating Hooper.

Anyway, Gary Hooper has not been the same player since March, in all honesty I think he's been quite awful, despite still scoring goals. Now, I am a big Gary Hooper fan but he doesn't look as sharp as he did I can't remember his last 8/10 performance.

My immediate thought from when he started playing like this was that he had a knock but it must be something more because it's been carrying on for a few months, maybe he's short on confidence? Do you think he will benefit from being rested for a few games? Or if he played with someone he could feed off? I don't know what's wrong with him but I suppose he's still scoring goals (or was at the end of last season)

On the plus side, he looks faster at times than he did last season:icon_mrgreen:.

Let the pelters rain down :icon_mrgreen:.

 

I agree mate ive just posted in the hooper vs stokesy thread about the same thing

 

Maybe he's just not as good as we all think

 

He just looks a different player .

 

I know but I wouldn't worry mate. For me without stokes and commons hooper will rarely score so when they get going I think hoppers goals will start flowing again.

 

Form is temporary, we all know he has the unreal ability he showed for so long last season! give him more time!

I have noticed it meself but Stokes wasnt the best ever at some points at look at him at the minute he's our best attacker.

 

Hooper is most effective when he is able to work in tandem with someone. The way that Lenny sent the team out yesterday is with Stokes deployed wide on the left and Coomons to the right, which left Hooper a little isolated at times. He is still a class player, but as we have been saying all summer, another forward, as well as the GK is what we need, so that if anything happens to Stokes or Hooper there is someone ready to step into their boots, so to speak.

 

He's been poor since that Bougherra done him in the Scottish Cup game.

 

This however I still think he'll score at least 15 goals this season.

 

Its still early as * in the season. Let the man get his wheels rolling before you start to judge him. He'll gear up. Just give him time. He came to us full throttle, scoring an amazing number of goals. Then we went into some pretty meaningless preseason friendlies. Now its real game time and he'll get back to where he was for us. Just watch.

 

He's being defended differently and some of it is tactics by Lenny. Today he was the lone striker. I don't think he's the best for that role, and it doesn't help when Stokes is on the wing ensuring that Hooper will get no service from that side. That's not to knock Stokes, but let's be honest, he's not gonna cross the ball.

I think he may be a little off form as well. I think Commons might also be a little off form. It happens. They'll snap out of it.

 

its a bit of most of wots being said ,commons of the boil and out of position , stokes not playing close enuf to him

 

That's about the extent of his talent mate. Remember, we got him from Scunthorpe.
What did you expect him to be, Henrik Larsson !!??!!

So let's not complain, as that's what we can afford & that's what we get !!

Hail Hail

 

No one expected him to be Henrik Larsson, but the fact he came from Scunthorpe means nothing. He cost more than Larsson anyway.

He's shown how good he is, now he's in his first real dip of form in his Celtic career, its about how well he picks himself up from it. Happens to every striker.

 

I thought he actually played reasonably well yesterday given he spent the majority of the match in a lone striker role, which doesn't suit him at all. Yeah he isn't as sharp as he was the turn of the year but it'll come, no worries.

 

hoopers not all about goals, his link
up ability is brilliant

 

Team just getting into the competitive mindset, any you guys who play fitty know that at the start of a season you can be too eager and overthink every pass, tackle, shot etc, i think this is whats up with Hooper, Commons, few more hours of football and we'll see the usual natural play from these guys.
this will come easier for the strikers if they are kept together as a front 2, yesterday was a bad formation

 

Massive fan of Hooper here.I've noticed he plays like Dimitar Berbatov at Man Utd.He gets Stokes,the Rooney of your squad to do most of the work.He stays upfront while Stokes runs more.Whether he worked more last season I don't know but it's only been two games into the season.I think the way he did last season has set high expectations for him too score a hatrick in every game.Give him time.
Maybe the penalty miss at Hibs didn't do his confidence any good.
I'm sure he will be fine.

 

I dont think his form is as bad as some people are saying ...Goals will come it will be a confidence thing thats all

 

Correct.

*. No he doesn't.

No he's not.

Thats not good enough for a first choice striker at Celtic. Though Imo he will get more.

It does to be fair. It means that he was in the English spotlight for a while, and not one team from there took a chance on him. There is a reason for that.

Its really not mate.

Tbh I cannot believe the praise that this guy gets from a lot of our fans. He will do well at SPL level, but not much higher imo. He is too much of a confidence player. I am really interested to see how he does at European level. I'll be honest and say I dont think he is good enough to make a mark at that level, but I hope I'm wrong.