What do we do with the enigma that is Clarke Oduor? I like him as he has a good touch, is composed on the ball and can spot a pass however his positioning is poor and therefore can be a defensive liability hence he’s not getting much game time. Where does he fit into our current side? Thus far the manager has been determined to play one formation 3-4-3. The obvious position for him would be left wing back however that position is currently occupied by arguably our most consistent player and you could argue if all our players are fit then he wouldn’t be second choice either. Potentially, he could play on the left of the front three however the manager hasn’t played him there though he has tried several others which leads one to conclude that this is a non starter. Additionally, there is an argument that he has the attributes to play in the central midfield role however his positioning counts against him plus there are probably 5 or 6 players in the current squad ahead of him for that position. Ideally - to accommodate him - he would be suited to play on the left with a left back behind him either in a 4-4-2 or 4-2-3-1 type formation but as previously stated the manager seems inflexible in his formation so this seems unlikely for the foreseeable future. He’s got time on his side as he’s still young and is on a four year contract but I feel he needs game time now for him to develop. Ideally, it would be good to send him out on loan however that could leave us exposed in the left wing back position. Thoughts?
I think he’s a central midfielder long term. I also think some fans got a bit too excited with a couple of good performances amongst a few more that were pretty poor. Still a work in progress but would have wanted to feature more than he has. I think there’s a trust issue there because of how complacent he can look and that ability he has to completely switch off. Where does he play? For now where Styles is but needs to develop an engine like Brittain.
Potentially, however I feel we're a stronger side with Styles on the left with either Palmer or Kane in the middle than we are with Odour on the left and Styles in the middle.
Strange one with Oduor. Seems at ease on the ball, passing is ok and he can also deliver from set pieces. However, he doesn't appear to have the energy or positional sense to play wing back in the current formation. And he also lacks end product when getting into crossing/shooting positions further up the pitch. Although this might be more to do with decision-making than actual ability. Either way, he doesn't seem particularly suited to playing as a winger or wide forward. It has been mentioned that he sees himself as a midfielder. So considering all the above I think it probably is worth looking at how he does in a midfield two.
Always think he could do a job running at defenders as part of the front three. Cutting inside, getting into the box and either having a shot or laying off that all important final ball.
I think the lad is still learning his trade & hopefully he develops to become a quality championship player . He obviously has a lot of ability but he also has flaws in his game, but I trust our head coach with his development .