If we compare Gardner to Sessegnon, the difference between an attacking midfielder and a defensive midfielder is plain for all to see. Gardner is the kind of player to get his foot in, to cover for players, to play the occasional direct ball forward and, should the ball come to him 25 yards out, strike a nice shot. And he is very good at that. He is not the kind of player to beat a man, to carry the ball 30-40 yards, to play and incisive 1-2, to pass and move and pass and move. Having 3 possible four players of Gardner's type in the midfield against Swansea cost us the game and resulted in some quite awful football. Gardner is a grafter who can strike a sweet shot, and i'm NOT having a go at him for that.
Larsson has no pace, and he's can't really beat a man (probably the most essential assets for a winger?). Other than that, i can't criticise Larsson. I think he's a terrific player. Larsson may have fine delivery, but what use is that if he can't get into a position to deliver the ball? To be honest, he never got close to delivering a cross against Swansea, he couldn't get out of his own half. A lot of wingers in the PL lack refined ability, but they are preferred because they can carry the ball forward. Look at Elmo, he's nowhere near the quality of Larsson, but when he came on against Swansea he almost made an immediate impact beating a man on the half way line and getting all the way to the edge of the box before completely fluffing his lines (that's another discussion). He's crap but was still more effective than Larsson, who offered no outlet and never came close to threatening. Larsson has all the attributes to be an excellent central and attacking midfielder IMO. Tbh, Larsson has a terrific head and physique for the game of football, and i'm sure he'd compete well in almost any postion including the right wing, but this is the PL and we're trying to establish ourselves in the top 10. We have to be really ****ing good. For me, Gardner and Cattermole in the middle with Larsson on the right just doesn't have the right ingrediants. If Bruce plays this way, We're going to need STONKING performances from Sessegnon and Gyan IMO.