It's been no secret that Derby County have been in the market for a target man striker who can hold the ball up. Connor Wickham of Premier League side Crystal Palace is the latest player to be linked with a move to Pride Park. What does the former Ipswich and Sunderland (and former England U21) striker bring to the table? We spoke with Mike from the Crystal Palace podcast Back of the Nest and Rob from Rethink It, Palace about the 27 year front man.
What type of striker is Connor Wickham?
Mike: He's a skillful player, but is still very much a target man. He's a big lad. He's comfortable on the ball and is decent at holding the ball up with his back to goal. When he's been given space, he can thrive - but maybe struggles a bit with the pace of the Premier League.
Rob: Connor Wickham is just that kind of player; he does the hold-up play bit well and given his size is a bit of a handful for defenders. He's good at knocking the ball on with his head and gets himself into good positions.
Derby have been looking for a big striker who can play as a target man and link up play, can Wickham do this?
Mike: Yeah very much so. He's a natural striker if that makes sense, his finishing is better than probably the other strikers we have at the moment.
Rob: His physical presence is probably his greatest attribute. He's got a good shot on
him when he takes chances, can head the ball and he's reasonably quick for a guy of his size.
It's difficult to really pinpoint more strengths as his appearances in the first team have been limited by his weakness, which is his injury record. Palace fans have seen sparks of his ability on occasion, but if you had to label one player in our team as a sicknote, it'd be Wickham. He suffered a bad knee injury a couple of years ago and struggled in his recovery from it, too. He was finally fit enough to play again but then spent time on loan at Sheffield Wednesday, where he was dropped by Garry Monk because of tiredness, apparently. A fit Connor Wickham could be a great player. But he needs to stay fit.
What are his strength's and weaknesses?
Mike: If he gets chances he will put them away, but he will need the service. He doesn't seem to thrive with slow build up play.
His main weakness is the fact the lad just can't stay fit. You could count on one hand how many times he's had a run of games in the last couple of years.
Rob: His injury issues are arguably his biggest problem, and that's why he hasn't featured as much as we'd have liked him to. He was signed by Alan Pardew with the plan for him to replace Glenn Murray in the side, but that didn't really work out, and he then suffered that ACL knee injury in a match against Swansea back in 2016, where he looked like a real threat. His recovery has been patchy (he spent 470 days out according to Transfermarkt) and he's had subsequent muscular strains too, which might be linked to the original injury he suffered. It's just been difficult for him to get any kind of consistent run in the side.
He was signed for a reported £7 million, rising to a potential £9 million, but in five years he's only played 41 games for Crystal Palace (and another 13 games on loan a Sheffield Wednesday). What has gone wrong? Has he struggled in to cut the grade in the Premier League or has the Palace managers just had a different idea?
Mike: He's similar to Christian Benteke in terms of the kind of player we'd field, so he's been behind him some of his career at Palace. But with Benteke's demise, he would have got way more game time had he not constantly been injured. He only went to Wednesday really because Jordan Ayew turned into our undroppable striker last season and he needed game time. I heard he had a mixed time in Yorkshire, but I didn't really see much footage so whether they got the best out of him, no idea.
If he stays fit, £7 million is a bargain. He won't though.
He's had his injury problems. What were the injuries and is he back fully fit?
Mike: One listener sent us a question once referring to him as 'breadstick legs' and it stuck with us on the pod. He's always, always injured. And it's no one thing - he just seems like one of those cursed players. There's been times he's got injured with a different injury whilst coming back from an injury.
Rob: He's supposedly back fit again. It's become a bit of a running joke with Wickham that whenever he's back, it'll only be a matter of days until he's out injured again.
How do you think he would cope with a move back to the Championship?
Mike: If he's fit, he'll score plenty - no doubt.
Rob: As I said above, he's got the ability to succeed in the Championship, and his first spell at Sheffield Wednesday supports that. His second spell at Wednesday less so.
What will it take for him to fulfill his potential?
Mike: I think you can guess my answer to that...
Rob: He needs to play football, regularly, and he needs a manager that trusts him. If he can find that at Derby, he'll do well there.
His contract runs out in the summer and he would be available on a free transfer. Would a successful loan spell get Wickham a new deal at Palace? Or is it the end of his Palace career?
Mike: Can't see it honestly. The way we play, false 9s seem to work better for us. And with Zaha now playing up front, he's better off elsewhere.
Rob: There are two facets to this question. The first is that he needs to do well enough to warrant featuring in a Premier League team, which given the past few years, seems a bit unlikely. Palace offered him a new contract in the hope that he'd return from his injury and kick on, which didn't happen. The best thing he can do is to move permanently and try to rebuild his career. Hopefully, he'll do that at Derby.
If he signs, what could Derby fans expect from him?
Mike: With decent service from the wings, you'll probably find him a really reliable finisher.
Rob: He just needs to play. If he can play a whole season and not get injured during it, he'll likely impress. He comes across as a good guy and his injury problems weren't his fault, but so much of his future is dependent on how fit he can stay. As I said above, he's got the attributes, now it's down to other factors.
Do you think he could be a success at Derby?
Mike: I'm sounding like a broken record, but....if he stays fit, yep, definitely...Really hope he does find his place somewhere, he's clearly a good lad.
Rob: I think all Palace fans would wish him well. He deserves to succeed. It's just sad that, since late 2016, he's spent so much time on the sidelines, being unable to have the kind of impact we'd have liked to have seen him have.
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