The Dapo Afolayen mystery. Can it be solved?

No matter how h baby iterations of the best eleven I run through in my head, quite a few of them are noticabley missing Afolayen.

And yet. Isn't he our best player?
And if so, why can't I seem to crow bar him into my team selections?

Are we stronger without our best player?

And can someone solve this for me. How often does Dapo lose the ball running into a blind alley? It seems an awful lot, especially when there are good passes available.

Disappears sometimes and sometimes has a complete stinker but he's by far our most creative and skilful player and should start every week for me. If he's having an off day drag him off after 60.

The problem for me is that when he came in he played out wide and did cause issues but Evatt doesn't play that system now. This means he has to either play him as a striker or a no10 which he isn't really suited to in my opinion.

If Evatt went back to a 343 then he would be an automatic but with us playing 3412 he will have to adjust.

Evatt is not interested in a "best eleven".
He's a squad man who will pick the team specifically to play each opposition team.
For Evatt, there are two or three definite starters but the rest of the squad will be chosen depending on how he reads each challenge.
No way is he going to stick with the same players week in, week out.

Dapo isn't as good defensively out wide as the other WBs and he isn't as incisive as Lee, Sadlier or Sheehan for that matter as a 10.
I'm sure Evatt studies the stats and is wondering what he's going to do with Dapo - maybe an "impact sub" when we need a goal late on?

I find it hard to believe that Evatt can’t find a way to include Dapo, who let’s be honest is our most valuable asset, down the left side. I fully accept that he’s lacking defensively but surely his attacking ability and goal threat overrides that issue. Our forwards aren’t scoring so whatever Evatt thinks his clever systems are delivering it certainly isn’t working in that respect. Dapo also ties up more than one defender which leaves space for the likes of Dion and whoever is at No10. Unlike say a Baka, I don’t see Dapo as an impact sub as when he has come on he’s never seemed to deliver much. He needs to be on from the start down the left if we’re ever to get the best from him otherwise we may as well get rid.

Whitesince63 wrote:I find it hard to believe that Evatt can’t find a way to include Dapo, who let’s be honest is our most valuable asset, down the left side. I fully accept that he’s lacking defensively but surely his attacking ability and goal threat overrides that issue. Our forwards aren’t scoring so whatever Evatt thinks his clever systems are delivering it certainly isn’t working in that respect. Dapo also ties up more than one defender which leaves space for the likes of Dion and whoever is at No10. Unlike say a Baka, I don’t see Dapo as an impact sub as when he has come on he’s never seemed to deliver much. He needs to be on from the start down the left if we’re ever to get the best from him otherwise we may as well get rid.

Evatt has made it clear that it's horses for courses so there is doubt that there will be games which Dapo starts.
Evatt is just using players he feels are needed for particular games.

I was thinking that Dapo needs to up his game. Sure he scored a scabby deflected goal the other day, but he did give away the ball a lot.
Other young players seem to be progressing notably Thomason and Johnston but I haven't seen the progression in Dapo recently. Maybe the early adulation has gone to his head?

You seem to get this with the creative players. There is something about his body language and effort that isn't there. Reminds me of when Sami Ameobi would drift out of form and look lazy.

Dapo isn't being lazy but he is doing something wrong. Decision making, dribbling too often or being too casual with the ball. And then looking for a free kick if it didn't work instead of battling.

Biggie wrote:Reminds me of when Sami Ameobi would drift out of form and look lazy.

You mean 9 out of 10 games.

Natasha Whittam wrote:

Biggie wrote:Reminds me of when Sami Ameobi would drift out of form and look lazy.

You mean 9 out of 10 games.

Give or take