As you can see from the video at the top of this page, the role of the center forward has evolved a bunch over the past couple of decades. Poachers aren't exactly a dying breed, but they're not a hot commodity either. Managers have (justifiably IMO) become enamored with the play of all-around No. 9s like Fanendo Adi, Charlie Davies and -- obviously -- Didier Drogba.
Last year in MLS, until Drogba's arrival there was nobody better in that role than Columbus Crew SC's Kei Kamara. He's a dominant physical presence who uses his underrated technical skills to hold up the ball, hold off defenders and complete passes. He is a smart and tireless defensive presence, both on set pieces and in terms of shaping opposing distribution. He is a modern No. 9.
Call me a heretic in this Age of Messi, but I still absolutely adore a towering, thumping near-post header. These almost always come after the most fundamental run in the game, when a forward catches a defender leaning the wrong way and absolutely trucks to the near post to get onto the end of a pinpoint cross:
This is a low-percentage run, because defenders are taught first and foremost to protect that near post. But it's also a run good forwards make 80% of the time, because as long as they're getting to that spot the defense has to A) react and B) respect the threat. By making the defense prioritize that area, both the both the back post and the area at the top of the box become a little more vacant and a little more inviting for on-rushing attacking midfielders. That's a feature of the 4-2-3-1 and the 4-3-3, not a bug.
Even great defenders -- like Laurent Ciman -- will get burned if they don't stick with their No. 9 at the near post, and thus that run produces the occasional goal. But more important is what it does to the shape of the field and the way it opens spots in the attacking third.
No matter how much the game changes in the coming years, fundamentally altering the defense's positioning with that near-post run will always apply. So don't expect much different from Kamara or Crew SC in 2016.
Author's Note
This is the 10th in a daily series counting down to to the MLS regular season first kick on March 6. I'm using Paul Carr's tweets (with his blessing) to examine some of the bigger storylines to follow in the upcoming season.
- 18 days out Examining David Villa's role for NYCFC
- 17 days out Can Larin replicate his rookie year heroics?
- 16 days out A new spot and new concerns for Giovinco
- 15 days out New start begins at the back for Chicago
- 14 days out Sporting can create, but who'll finish?
- 13 days out Young-at-the-back Union flipping the script
- 12 days out JaviMo squares off against Father Time
- 11 days out Drogba's magic, but Impact need a Plan B
- 10 days out Revs need to find Fagundez at the back post
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