A couple of misfiring strikers, two rare English right-backs and an apparent Man Utd ‘bully’ had chances to impress in the Carabao Cup but duly wasted them.
Diego Costa
There are better times to chuck in an inadequate performance. With Matheus Cunha headed to Molineux as the first signing of Julen Lopetegui’s reign, Diego Costa continued his wait for a first goal in English football since May 2017.
Not that it was for the want of trying. The Spaniard had five shots against Gillingham but only one found its target, forcing a save from Jake Turner. Costa was otherwise ineffective, offering precious little yet again as the focal point of a blunt attack.
Lopetegui warned the striker, making his return after a three-match ban, to “push the bad things away” out of an increasingly forlorn hope that Wolves might “see his character, playing football, not making silly things”. It might be time to accept the gamble hasn’t worked.
Ainsley Maitland-Niles
It started with a wild attempt at a clearance which bounced off his standing foot and looped up into Gavin Bazunu’s goal and ended with a stint at right-back, with some askew passes, faulty touches and questionable decisions in between. Ainsley Maitland-Niles has had more enjoyable evenings.
Southampton scraped past Lincoln and not even a handful of players emerged with credit in the bank. Che Adams played well, Duje Caleta-Car stabilised the defence from the bench at half-time and Samuel Edozie impressed in a late cameo. But Lyanco, Adam Armstrong and Maitland-Niles must have left Nathan Jones wondering what he had inherited.
The new Southampton manager might well be the latest to fail at solving the Maitland-Niles riddle. Is he versatile or just not good enough to find consistency in one position, never mind a single club? Arsenal do not miss him and on this evidence nor would his third loan club in under two years.
Adam Smith
‘Found himself penned back around his own penalty area for sustained periods,’ according to Dorset Live, who added that Adam Smith was given ‘a stern test’ by Allan Saint-Maximin before scoring the unfortunate own goal which dumped Bournemouth out of the cup.
It’s at least a little bit weird that Adam Smith remains a relative Bournemouth regular as 2023 approaches. That can’t be right. The global overpopulation of right-backs continues unabated but still the Cherries cling to their defensive safety blanket. At least do it properly and bring Steve Cook…
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