Brought in to upgrade the team’s attacking arsenal to established Championship standard, on the face of it, it’s been an underwhelming start to life at Coventry City for Martyn Waghorn. For a striker who had been signed by a club for £5 million just over three years ago, one goal from ten league appearances is sub-par. However, the expectations surrounding Martyn Waghorn, as a free agent signing from a Derby County side that had struggled last year, were more circumspect and the forward has fit in at the club reasonably well. Waghorn has played the role of a useful foil for the players around him, particularly Viktor Gyokeres, to decent effect in the Sky Blues’ strong start to the season.
It took a little while for Martyn Waghorn to get going in Coventry City shirt, often seeming to move into similar areas to Viktor Gyokeres and thus tending to make himself a peripheral figure. As his understanding with his strike partner has developed, it has been Viktor Gyokeres who has adapted his game to play on the shoulder of the opposing defence more often, with Martyn Waghorn tending to drop deep and link the play. The team has often looked more fluid when Waghorn is in the side, and he clearly seems to relish playing alongside smart, technical players, even if he isn’t an outstanding technical footballer himself. It is Waghorn’s nous that has made himself useful as a link player between midfield and attack.
As a striker who has contributed just one goal and one assist in ten appearances, there are questions to be asked as to whether the good things that Martyn Waghorn provides could be replicated by a more prolific goalscorer or creator. Waghorn’s experience is something that is and will continue to be useful for the team over the course of the season, especially in situations where the team is defending leads. The task for the striker going forward is to continue to link the play effectively while getting himself involved in goalscoring more directly on a consistent basis.
Sideways Sammy 