Missing Craig Forsyth

Amongst all the hullabaloo about the injury woes of Will Hughes and Craig Bryson this season, the loss of one player seems to have passed everyone by. I am of course, talking about our resident Scottish Left Back, Craig Forsyth.

First, A Bit of History
What a steal he has been for the club. Arriving on a free transfer from Watford under Nigel Clough, 'Fozzy' had previously been employed as a winger before being converted to a left back in our time of need - Gareth Roberts wasn't getting any younger. Watford fans were eager to see him go and it was easy to see why; his lack of explosive pace and an inability to deliver accurate crosses made him a poor winger. However, after being converted to a left back (the same position he played in his youth) delivered an upturn in form.

With Clough sacked and Steve McClaren brought in, Forsyth began to hit new heights, with his attacking play down the left becoming one of the cornerstones of the Derby team that reached the playoff final. The season after McClaren asked him to sit back a bit more often, leading a downturn in his fortunes and he finished the season in the worst form of his Derby career. A quivering mess, he looked like a man scared of the ball, which wasn't helped by McClaren moving him to centre back for several games late on in the season.

McClaren left in the summer and was replaced by newcomer Paul Clement. Clearly unsure of the quality of his new squad Clement took to rotating Forsyth with Stephen Warnock, with Forsyth playing primarily in home games and Warnock taking over for away matches. However, he appeared to be making the left back spot his own once again, when he cruelly got injured at home against Queens Park Rangers. Leaping over the sliding challenge of a defender, he twisted his right knee tearing his Anterior Cruciate Ligament and ruling himself out of action for the rest of the season.

With Forsyth out for the season, Warnock took over as first choice left back and in January Marcus Olsson was signed to provide further cover. Warnock is a good player; he rarely loses his one on ones with the opposing winger and has this knack of being at the right place at the right time when the ball is flashed across goal from the opposite side of the pitch. However, he simply doesn't bring as much to the team as Forsyth does.

Craig Forsyth in action (Andy Clarke)

Bringing the Ball out of Defence
When a team is being pressed high up the pitch, it can be tough to pass the ball out from the back, especially if some of your defensive players aren't  particularly comfortable on the ball (looking at you Jason Shackell). This either leads to players being caught on the ball, or long balls being played out from the back; something that I doubt is part of Mel Morris' 'Derby Way'.

Under Steve McClaren and under Clement to a lesser extent, one of our most effective ways of relieving pressure was to loft the ball to Forsyth, who would knock it on to the likes of Chris Martin and Craig Bryson. This was a superb use of his height; it's not very often you get a winger who could challenge 'Fozzy' in the air. It also helped getting the ball forward quickly in a way that you couldn't describe as being route one - it was easy on the eye. Say what you will about the likes of Warnock and Olsson, they simply aren't capable of putting this into practice, making it even more frustrating when we continued with this tactic months after Forsyth got injured.

Stephen Warnock (Andy Clarke)

Attacking Threat
As mentioned earlier, Forsyth doesn't have that rapid acceleration that you tend to find in wingers. What is though, is fast once he gets going. This made him a huge threat on the overlap; players like Bryson and Jamie Ward would simply have to knock the ball into space and there would only be one winner in the foot race between Forsyth and the covering winner. Olsson offers this to a degree, but Warnock either couldn't or wouldn't.

A staple part of Derby's attacking diet in the past couple of seasons has been the full backs whipping in dangerous balls, both from the byline and earlier. Forsyth in particular, was good at whipping it into areas where the strikers and onrushing midfielders should be. Let's not kid ourselves, there were matches when near enough every ball would be shanked behind for a goal kick, or stubbornly refuse to beat the first man. Those days where quite rare however, and in my opinion it's far more preferable to attempt those crosses and not quite pull them off, than to play it safe and not try at all. Warnock when he gets forward is far better at picking out individual players than Forsyth - the problem is he doesn't ever get forward. I have to be honest and say that I've not seen enough of Olsson to form a valid opinion of him with regards to this part of his game.

New arrival Marcus Olsson (Andy Clarke)

Defending
Left backs should be defenders first and foremost, at least that's what they used to be. It's an interesting one, comparing the likes of Forsyth and Warnock defensively because they are very different in their styles. Forsyth uses his considerable frame to great effect; never diving in, he stands up to his opponent forcing them wide out to the byline where he will often block the attempted cross in. Warnock however is far more confrontational; he will dive in, attempting to win the ball quickly before the opposition winger can get closer to the penalty area.

Both styles have there drawbacks. Forsyth in the past has struggled against pacy wingers when they attack from deep, exposing his poor acceleration. Warnock's style is very high risk, especially for someone of his experience; all it takes is one touch from the opponent and they are away into pen space whilst Warnock is lying on the floor. In his defence though, Warnock is very rarely off in his timing. Olsson is very much an unknown quantity in this situation. From the little I've seen of him, I think he's leans more to Forsyth's style of play, using acceleration instead of height to stand up his opponent.

Forsyth fending off Simon Francis (Getty Images)

Defending in the penalty area is what I like to think of as the last line of defence, if you miss out here or get your timing off the odds are you'll be relying on the goalkeeper to make the safe or the opposition to miss the target. Warnock is absolutely superb in this area, almost always able to make a vital interception when the ball is flashed across goal or leap to head the ball clear when crossed in. This is mainly down to his superb positioning; he knows where to be to help maximise his chances of dealing with every possible situation. Forsyth is also good at this, but I've noticed that he often tend to drift more centrally when the ball is on the opposite side of the pitch, knowing that if the ball is whipped in high, his height can help him deal with it.

From what I've seen, Olsson is definitely the weakest of the three at this part of the game. Against Fulham on his debut he was slow to sort his feet out, conceding an own goal as a result, whilst against Wolves he was caught under the ball for their second goal. There's no doubt in my mind that Warnock and Forsyth would have cleared chances. However, it's early in his Derby career and I'm sure he'll improve with time as he gains more of an understanding with his teammates.

I have to say I miss Forsyth. He offers so much to this team and despite the fact he can be one of our most frustrating players, he was absolutely key in playing the way I assume Mel Morris wants us to play; fast, attacking football that is capable of carving up the opposition. Warnock was probably the ideal player for Clement and his style of football; thinking of defending first and second and then attacking third. Olsson appears to be an improvement over Warnock in an attacking sense, but I do wonder about his defensive capabilities.