Everywhere I look right now I'm seeing people bash the (Soon to be confirmed) signing of Bayo and my question is why? What has he done wrong? From what I can remember he played a very tricky role sitting in behind Cody trying to flick the ball on and do a job he wasn't really suited to play. If you look at what he did in his two spells at Northampton he scored goals, how many times did people take a sly dig at our strike force for not scoring enough goals? Far too many if I remember correctly. If he had not ever played for us before I genuinely feel people would be commending Allen for being able to attract a player who scored 16 goals last season and was a key part of Northampton's unsuccessful play-off campaign. People may call me up on this but I honestly think Hessy tried to make Bayo into the player he LOOKS like he should be rather than the player he ACTUALLY is, for example when Bayo was here before it was a case of 'How hard can the centre half ping this ball straight into the chest of Bayo and hope it just sticks to him' whereas the way it should be is 'How can I play the ball to his feet where he can use he strength to hold of the defender before either passing it on or taking a shot'. Don't get me wrong at the age of 30 (31?) he is no spring chicken and he is ironically 'too big' (carries too much muscle for what seems like vanities sake rather than anything else) but he has proven to be a goalscorer and adds a dynamic that despite people saying Kedwell does, we were lacking. Also if it were a straight choice between Burton and Bayo (which I feel it is, as I imagine it will be a similar chunk of wage) I would choose Bayo every day of the week as I feel he does the same and more. Finally, and I know this won't go down too well but you cant deny that he does bring with him a 'huge' amount of publicity with him being a cult figure in the lower leagues and on FIFA! All I'm saying is lets be positive I feel Allen is going to sign another striker who fits the 'fox in the box' role better but Bayo is a very talented footballer who I feel is an upgrade on Burton and is another step in the right direction ahead of next season. Hopefully the lack of announcement today was so that two players can be revealed at the same time tomorrow rather than one on either day? Who knows! But what I do know is that I will welcome him back with open arms and feel rather smug when he scores 10+ next season!
Bayo's done absolutely nothing wrong in my book. Welcome back to the guy I say, look forward to seeing him play again next season. Beast Mode style #BMO
100% agree. I have seen very few players in the lower leagues with a better first touch than Bayo and he certainly can't get knocked off the ball.We still need someone to play off of him though which hopefully will be Cody
My question is why aren't people removing the blinkers? We all love Cody Mac and I would love him to be playing here next season but, we have to remember, this guy has done nothing outside of Gillingham and league two. If you're planning on bringing in Cody, it is common sense to bring in the guy whom he partnered with and score THIRTY SIX goals combined. Rave about Kedwell all you like, and say how better he is (which he isn't), but all you're doing in that situation is homering to the extreme. He's a very, very good player...so is Bayo...and if they're battling for one spot then that's only going to make us better with competition. We now have two strikers who suit that style (if Bayo does in fact sign) and they'll battle it out for one spot...perfect. You should always be looking over your shoulder. IF...and that's a big if...we are bringing in Cody, it's just common sense to bring in Bayo. Lets leave it at that and put trust in the very same guy most of the fan base doubted at the start of last season...and he shut all of those people up resoundingly.
I also welcome Bayo back. All you dreamers out there expecting free flowing football in Div 1 can forget it. We haven't go the budget or the players, if we are going to survive in Div 1 (and possibly even prosper) we need a plan B up front. Bayo provides that and is a proven goalscorer in the lower leagues. Up the BEAST.
Who ever said our strikers didn't score enough? Kedwell scored 16 and Burton scored 13. Weston who some say is a striker (brb) scored 8. Not as if the team is light on the goals front is it. Im just worried that we will be drawn into a style of football with Bayo which could hamper our chances of staying League One. Longball football won't work in this league and with Bayo playing you will always get drawn into that style of play. Then again Kedwell and Akinfenwa would probably the scariest striking partnership in England.
The main disappointment that is overshadowing Bayo's potential signing for the club is the fact we all have our hopes set on getting Cody back and after Allen's comments it made it seem this was the case. (Which it still could be!) But I can say i'll happily welcome Bayo back to the club. If it was anyone else this would be seen as a great signing. He's averaged 17 goals for Northampton in league 2 and scored 20 goals in 48 games for them in league 1 only a few seasons ago. The reason why he didn't maybe grab a few more goals for us was due to the long punted ball he was provided with whilst he was here. Which really isn't his strength. When we did play the ball into his feet his first touch was decent and with his big frame he was very good at holding up the ball and supplying others around him. Only fear for me is his fitness, but under Mad dogs fitness regime i reckon he will get him the fittest hes been for a long time. With Kedwell and hopefully Cody or a similar player he will get a little more rotation than he did under Hess which will keep him fresh throughout the season.
