Charlton Athletic signing Sunderland’s Aiden McGeady on loan for the rest of the season has given manager Lee Bowyer a tactical dilemma.
On the chalkboard
The Addicks made three loan additions on deadline day of the January transfer window – Aiden McGeady, Matt Smith and David Davis.
It was vital that they brought players in, due to the fact that the temporary signing of Andre Green had been their only other capture of the window up to that point.
However, when looking specifically at the acquisition of McGeady, things are not necessarily straight forward for the club.
The Republic of Ireland international did not play a single one of the last 10 games that he was available at the Stadium of Light.
However, the bigger issue for Bowyer in terms of the entire season is the tactical dilemma that the 33-year-old gives him.
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Dilemma
Bowyer’s favoured formation has been 3-5-2 at times this season, but it is difficult to see how the Irishman would fit into that system.
First of all, there is absolutely no way that his style would fit the wing-back role, as an ageing player whose game was never built on pace in his prime is highly unlikely to thrive there.
This means that Bowyer would be left with either the striker or centre-midfield positions to deploy him.
Having him as a striker could be detrimental to the team, as they currently have Andre Green and Lyle Taylor – who combined well against Barnsley, both scoring – while there is also Macauley Bonne who is waiting to come in from injury.
Then there is the fact that he has played as a striker just twice in his career – once for Celtic in 2004 and again for Sunderland in 2017.
There are also issues with the prospect of playing him in midfield, mainly that his attacking instincts may end up being restricted.
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In his 13 starts and two substitute appearances, he returned four goals and two assists, while also making 1.4 key passes and 1.7 dribbles per game.
With that in mind, it will be intriguing to see how Bowyer gets the best out of McGeady while sticking to his preferred tactic.
Meanwhile, Charlton fans have been swooning over one man following their contribution against Barnsley.