SKY Sports pundit Don Goodman believes Haji Wright must improve his hold-up play and heading if he is to play as a striker for Coventry City.
Wright came off the bench in Coventry’s opening day draw with Hull City and featured up front late on for Frank Lampard’s side at the Coventry Building Society Arena.
However, Sky pundit Goodman believes Wright does not currently have the attributes to play as a number nine, citing a lack of physicality and heading ability despite his frame.
Speaking to Compare.bet, Goodman said: “I think most people hold the belief that Haji Wright is most effective from the wide left and, personally, that’s where I’ve seen him play at his best.
“If he is going to play as a number nine, there are a couple of areas that he’s definitely got to work on.
“Despite being a big, strong lad, he doesn’t appear to like the physical aspects of playing down the middle, as in making contact with centre halves, having the ability to make contact and being close.
“As a consequence of that, I think his hold-up play wouldn’t be one of his strengths.
“I also don’t think heading is a massive strength of his for somebody so big.
“I don’t see him as a natural headerer of the ball, and, ironically, Coventry City were the team that put the most crosses in last season.
“Now, he may have scored two or three other tap-ins from crosses with his feet, but he only scored one header.
“If Coventry are wanting to play him as a central striker, then there’s work to be done on the training ground, I think, and a new understanding for Haji to try and grasp.”
Goodman also does not believe playing Wright through the middle would suit Coventry’s style of play, particularly at the CBS Arena.
And Goodman reiterated his belief that he thinks Wright is more effective when he plays out wide.
Goodman added: “Those kind of strikers are a throwback, and I’m not sure you can ever ask Haji Wright to be that kind of striker.
“So if he is going to play down the middle, maybe you want him stretching defenders, maybe you want him making clever runs in behind.
“The problem is, if you’re one of the better teams, and certainly Coventry are going to be, you’re often, especially at home, going to come up against a low block and so there isn’t going to be room for Haji Wright to run in behind.
“So you’ve got to find a different way, and one of the different ways is for him to pin centre halves and hold the ball up and wait for runners.
“Look, he can do a job there, but I think, in reality, he’d probably be more effective coming from slightly wider.”
