Dwight Gayle is the kind of instinctive forward that is such a rare breed and I’m sure he will improve the Stoke City squad.
He’s a different type than Steven Fletcher, who was obviously a target player. He’s clever around the box with his movement, on the go all the time, and when you get that kind of striker the ball seems to drop to them. It might seems uncanny, it shouldn’t be a surprise.
They are constantly seeking. Gayle is a player who is aware of movement, opponents and space. That’s not luck, it’s instinctive. You can try to coach it and you can improve it but the basic skill is innate. You’re born with it. The more you work at it the better it gets but that split second that gets you in front of a defender is so vital. The best poachers are never static, they are always trying to get one step ahead.
Stoke had a lot of crosses coming in from the flanks last season, particularly from Josh Tymon. Crosses before defenders, crosses from behind defenders and the by-line and it needs someone with that instinctiveness to get on the end of them.
That’s the difference between getting a draw when you’re losing and a win when you’re drawing. For a couple of great examples, we had it with England with Gary Lineker and we had it with Stoke with Mike Sheron.
Gayle hasn’t played much for the best part of three seasons but as a professional athlete he should be fit anyway. He should keep his body and brain up to scratch. If you lose your fitness, you’ll lose your traits and you have to keep up those levels – but he will still have that instinctive movement if he is fit.
Likewise, it shouldn’t matter if he’s 32. He’ll be working on his sharpness and if you have the right attitude and make-up about you, you get there.
I still
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