With the recent forms of the world’s best known footballers and with the trend set by some scoring an incredible number of goals each season I was triggered to redefine the expectations. Football has become a faster paced game, and a player who is expected to score and fails in doing so in consecutive games is deemed a failure. Even more; a player who is expected to score a hat-trick every game and scores only one goal is considered a mediocre performer.
I am not here to judge who the best player is and not willing to compare statistics, so I created a poll (check here). The poll was a mere reflection of my thoughts on what a striker is. The results of the poll put a smile on my face because football fans have decided on the best description: A striker is a Batistuta.
The Machine Gun: The Batigol famous celebration
Back to the basic definitions of football positions, and blaming it on my old school mentality and attachment, a typical striker is the one responsible for scoring goals only. There are many formats of how a striker can be deployed but there is only one task assigned to a striker: get the ball in the net.
My personal definition of a striker: Is a number 9 – Is NOT a centre forward – Is selfish in front of goals – Has deadly finishing skills – Is clinical in the box – Needs one chance in 90 minutes – Is powerful against defenders – Ends a team maneuver with a thrust – Is not the most talented – Can score with any body part frequently
As dull as this may seem, one pass, one ball, one chance can define a striker
You might not agree on the above definition or simply think it is lame and plain. You might be right while I strive trying to segregate between: False 9 – Center Forward – Striker – Attacker – Poacher – etc. These name tags and positions are just the result of the normal evolution of football tactics, but the last typical striker I have seen is Gabriel Batistuta aka BATIGOL.
The perfect positioning of a striker comes even after a forward's
In the words of Diego Maradona “if you gave Batistuta a rugby ball he’d score with it” “He’d go 80 minutes without touching the ball and in the last 10 he’ll score a hattrick – That’s exactly what a goalscorer is all about.”
Batistuta did not win all the titles throughout his career and did not manage more than 30 goals in one season, but he defined what a striker should be. In his own words: “One title with Fiorentina is worth ten with Milan or Juventus.” In the Summer of 2000, Fabio Capello asked the management to sign him Batistuta to win Serie A. Capello got his man and AS Roma won the title with Batistuta scoring 20 crucial goals in 28 league games.
Messi, Rooney, Ronaldo, and many others are maybe greater talents with an awesome hunger for goal. They can score 30 and 40 goals in every game but none is the typical striker I am searching for since the Batigol retirement. As of the time of writing this post, Batigol sits among only four players who scored two hattricks in the World Cup history and is the only one who managed to do so in two different consecutive tournaments (1994 and 1998).
Batistuta is the last striker in a generation of a rare breed throughout history; and the likes of Marco van Basten, perhaps.
Fiorentina fans set a life-size bronze statue of Batistuta in 1996, in recognition of his performances for Fiorentina (not even titles)
p.s. The following links are some of my favorite Batistuta goals: Goal against Barcelona – Goal against Manchester United – Goal against Arsenal – Goal against Juventus – Goal against Fiorentina
If you do not want to use Google or Wikipedia to research Gabriel Batistuta, you can always check this blog post that I stumbled upon in April 2011 by Joe Sharratt (@fiveinmidfield):All-Time Great – Gabriel Batistuta
Filed under: Argentina, Football
