3 goals, 8 progressive runs & 1.13 shots: Paul Cook may have regrets over use of Ipswich Town individual

Ipswich spent the first half of the season struggling to have exactly the impact they would have wanted in League One.

After splashing some cash in a bid to establish themselves as promotion contenders this year, Paul Cook was expected to take the Tractor Boys into the top six but after some mediocre results, he found them slipping down the division.

The board eventually decided that enough was enough and parted ways with the former Portsmouth boss. Rather than bring in an experienced head though, they plumped for Kieran McKenna and the decision has proven to be a masterstroke so far.

One player who has been rejuvenated under the former Man United coach is Kayden Jackson, who has begun to thrive given more game-time in an attacking role at Portman Road. He was one player that was left out in the cold by Cook but McKenna has given him another chance and the attacker has grabbed it with both hands.

With the striker now firing in goals and looking solid, should Paul Cook have used him more? Do the stats suggest a forward player that could have offered more had he been used or is this merely a flash in the pan?

A basic view of his stats suggest a player that certainly can be a handful for opposition defences but one that isn’t setting the league alight and one that still has room for improvement.

His general attacking work is solid enough for example. He has three goals and three assists in the league so far this year and when he does manage to get a shot off – he’s had just seven so far, with three of those being his goals – it does test the goalkeeper as much as you would want. A manager would want any of his attacking players to at least get a shot on target and Jackson does 85.7% of the time – a high rate. It also