Is Kachunga any good?

Ian Evatt hopes Wanderers fans got a better understanding of what Elias Kachunga brings to his side after Tuesday night’s win against MK Dons.

The former Huddersfield Town man was named in a League One starting line-up for only the third time this season – and rewarded his manager’s decision with a high-energy display alongside Dion Charles up front.

Evatt appreciates it has taken some supporters time to warm to Kachunga since he signed at the UniBol last season.

But he thinks the 30-year-old showed why he is valued so highly within the Wanderers set-up with his grasp of the tactical demands in midweek.

“I think sometimes Kacha gets the rough end of the stick a little bit,” said the Bolton boss. “I’m really pleased with all the forwards we have and we felt Kacha dropping into those pockets of space would really help us.

“I think he is reliable when the ball goes into him and his work ethic and his understanding of the press is excellent.

“He has played for managers that have a similar ethos to how we want to press, (David) Wagner and in Germany in particular, and I thought his understanding of when to press a centre back or when to drop in on pivot because Kieran Lee has emptied the space to go to a centre back was fantastic. I’m really pleased for him.”

Kachunga’s goal return in a Bolton shirt has been scrutinised, with five last season in all competitions and one this term in the Papa Johns Trophy against Salford City.

Evatt feels he should not be judged solely on his scoring record – and with other strikers also being asked to fulfil a more selfless pressing role this season he believes Kachunga’s example could also apply to others in the squad.

“We have to appreciate his hard work and sacrificing for the team because the type of team we have, we’re trying to be dangerous in possession and out of possession,” he said. “Kacha’s understanding of pressure and when to press, who to press, how to press, how intensely to run and press is fantastic and top drawer.

“Him and Kieran are probably the best two in terms of understanding when and how to press. We have to respect that work because that work gains us goals as well and it makes us dangerous out of possession.”

Wanderers will have Jon Dadi Bodvarsson fit again to face Peterborough United this weekend and also left Dapo Afolayan on the bench at MK.

Rotating his attacking players has been a challenge for Evatt and he has urged them not to lose motivation.

“I think the world of them all,” he said. “I am not going to be able to keep them all happy but that’s football and we’re blessed to have a really good squad and we’ll keep working hard to keep them all happy and to pick the right team for the right occasion but onto Saturday now.

“Baka came on and looked sharp, Kieran Sadlier has been playing out of his skin and training really well and deserves more opportunities, we haven’t used Dapo and Jon is back on Saturday so good luck keeping these lot happy!”

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Well, what do you think?

The rotation is hard because all of our players could argue that they deserve to be starting. And you can't give them all equal opportunities because it would unsettle the rhythm too much. Evatt is juggling but as the season goes on things will settle as injuries and suspension kick in.

He's a tryer, but clearly not good enough.

A better option than Baka ATM

Although he occasionally shows glimpses of promise, for the most part, he's ineffective and contributes very little. Most concerning to me is that he's considered good enough to start some games which highlights how weak our options are up top.

There is of course the theory that Evatt starts with a weaker team to run the opposition stupid and then replaces them with superior players after around an hour. This may explain Kachunga's presence but I just don't see how he's more than a bench warmer - unless he's a cracking keeper.

finlaymcdanger wrote:Although he occasionally shows glimpses of promise, for the most part, he's ineffective and contributes very little. Most concerning to me is that he's considered good enough to start some games which highlights how weak our options are up top.

There is of course the theory that Evatt starts with a weaker team to run the opposition stupid and then replaces them with superior players after around an hour. This may explain Kachunga's presence but I just don't see how he's more than a bench warmer - unless he's a cracking keeper.

Both Kachunga and Charles are excellent in the high press - amongst the best in the league - which is exactly what Evatt demands and why they play.
Both have goals in them but they just don't score enough and that's largely because they are running around outside the box for the most part - and are decent but not top class finishers anyway. We create so few properly clear cut chances that on the few occasions they find themselves in with the opportunity to score they fluff it and to me it's no great surprise after the miles they put in.
It would be wonderful if we could afford to have a dedicated fox in the box who can prowl around waiting for the chances to be delivered on a plate but we can't - we have a journeyman team of workers who have no option but run, press and harry constantly to give us any chance.
To get players that can do that and then still have the energy and composure to finish ruthlessly at the end of it would cost us money beyond our budget, so in the absence of that we have to ask the question "if we're going to start someone else which players have a higher workrate?"
Baka? Morley? Sadlier? Dapo?
I don't think so and I'll put money on Evatt having the stats to back it up.

This theory of tiring the opposition out makes sense, because the easier-on-the-eye players like Dapo and Morley etc will have more success against tired players than a fresh team.

But as Evatt says, you have to earn the right to play.

Chunga got a lot of praise on Saturday but I'm still not sure what he did. I want him to produce more and I really hope he does.

Biggie wrote:Chunga got a lot of praise on Saturday but I'm still not sure what he did. I want him to produce more and I really hope he does.

He ran and hustled effectively and didn't give the ball away (unlike Dapo when he came on) - just couldn't break through the last line - but it was an excellent effort.
I think we'd like all the forward players to produce more chances and goals, but I think that would require more quality than we can afford - I'd go as far as to say that Evatt is close to getting the best possible out of this squad and we can hardly say they're not trying their hardest.
The movement around the box is a bit stagnated at times and maybe that can be worked on along with finishing - but how much more potential they have is the question.

He did ok on Saturday but we looked too lightweight upfront with him and Dion together. We need to hope JDB can stay fit and play more often.

He's a tryer, so fair play to him. But despite all the waffle from the armchair brigade, he's a striker so he's judged on goals scored or goals created.

He's done neither.

He's not a striker - at least not in this system.

wanderlust wrote:
Both Kachunga and Charles are excellent in the high press - amongst the best in the league - which is exactly what Evatt demands and why they play.
Both have goals in them but they just don't score enough and that's largely because they are running around outside the box for the most part - and are decent but not top class finishers anyway. We create so few properly clear cut chances that on the few occasions they find themselves in with the opportunity to score they fluff it and to me it's no great surprise after the miles they put in.
It would be wonderful if we could afford to have a dedicated fox in the box who can prowl around waiting for the chances to be delivered on a plate but we can't - we have a journeyman team of workers who have no option but run, press and harry constantly to give us any chance.
To get players that can do that and then still have the energy and composure to finish ruthlessly at the end of it would cost us money beyond our budget, so in the absence of that we have to ask the question "if we're going to start someone else which players have a higher workrate?"
Baka? Morley? Sadlier? Dapo?
I don't think so and I'll put money on Evatt having the stats to back it up.

This theory of tiring the opposition out makes sense, because the easier-on-the-eye players like Dapo and Morley etc will have more success against tired players than a fresh team.

But as Evatt says, you have to earn the right to play.

Agree - Our attackers spend too much time tackling back on the half-way line. That's been successful so far for Evatt and the way he wants it.  However, when the ball breaks for us there is nobody in the box. We have to slow down the play. Our strikers are knackered towards the end of games and so the subs come on. If you look at the current golden boy Harland at City - he spends his time lurking in the box and rarely runs back to tackle. So, it's whatever tactics the manager wants IMO.