Wednesday night saw Harry Cornick make his first start in Bristol City colours since his deadline day switch from Luton Town, the forward being deployed in the middle of a front three with captain Andi Weimann to his right and fellow new signing Anis Mehmeti to his left.
The former Hatter worked hard for little reward against the low block of Wigan and despite not being able to have a huge influence on proceedings, he gave those inside Ashton Gate a glimpse of what his game is all about.
With Bristol City being well stocked in terms of front players with Sam Bell, Nahki Wells and Mark Syke all providing healthy competition while Tommy Conway steps up his recovery from a hamstring injury, Cornick will have to impress to become a regular fixture in the Robin’s front-line.
City’s new number nine found himself substituted on the hour mark with Wells replacing him to lead the line. Here’s how he fared in his first Bristol City start.
Dropping in to link up play
Most reviews from Luton fans tended to follow the trend of describing Cornick as a runner, with his lightning pace his primary asset. What was interesting in his first real showing for Pearson’s side was his willingness to drop into a more attacking midfield role and attempt to link between those running beyond him.
It wasn’t always necessarily effective with the 27-year-old managing to complete only five of his 14 passes, including one frustrating misplaced effort to find Alex Scott midway through the first half that seemed a fairly simple ball on viewing from the stands.
There were however a couple of technically impressive and effective flicks to find his teammates with first-time passes, the most eye-catching being a backheel to find Weimann in the penalty area. Unfortunately, the Austrian struggled to pick out a teammate in red, a common factor throughout his first start since returning from injury.
Considering this was his first genuine runout in City colours and a first opportunity to play through the middle this season, having played off the flank for the Hatters, it’s not surprising there was a touch of rustiness in his play. Hopefully, over time as relationships between him and his new teammates grow, he’ll be able to make his involvement in those deeper areas more effective.
Physical presence, maybe not an aerial one
Cornick is a much more physically imposing figure than the likes of Wells or Bell, but he wasn’t able to be particularly effective as an aerial presence on Wednesday night.
Of the 13 aerial duels he contested, he only won three, admittedly facing up against the almost six-foot frames that make up Wigan’s backline including Jack Whatmough and Charlie Hughes was never likely to be an easy task.
City must ensure that they don’t fall into the trap of just punting the ball long now they have a target to aim for, like they occasionally did with Chris Martin because this is certainly not Cornick’s primary strength.
It will be interesting to see if he starts against Sunderland on Saturday, whether when faced with an opponent that is more willing to get the ball down and play, his physical strength is more noticeable.
Defensive qualities
Famara Diedhiou and Chris Martin were brilliant at it - and that is defending from corners. Lee Johnson once described Diedhiou as “probably the best player in the world at defending the mid-goal zone" while Pearson said Martin was the "most reliable defender" last season.
There was evidence Cornick can play his part inside his own area and including just before the 20-minute mark when James McClean’s corner was met by the head of the forward at the near post.
What made the 27-year-old’s defensive contribution even more impressive was the fact it was immediately followed by him managing to pick up a loose ball on the edge of the area and clear the danger.
Obviously, Pearson won’t have brought the forward in for his defensive qualities, but with weaknesses earlier this season in terms of defending set-pieces and the fact that City aren’t the tallest of sides, another head in the box alongside Zak Vyner and Rob Atkinson can only prove beneficial, especially if the Robins are looking to close out games in the final stages.
Patience is key
Before we get too critical or too far ahead of ourselves, Cornick has only played 113 minutes of football for Bristol City, so it is very early days. Add to that, as previously mentioned, he hasn’t played a huge amount of football as a solo central striker.
There were a number of times City’s new number nine chased the ball into the channel or offered pace in behind. Midway through the first period he broke away on a counter, lifting the ball past two Wigan defenders and looked to be bearing down on goal if not for one last covering defender.
He may not have hit the ground completely running, yet there were plenty of signs in his first start of the quality that he will offer as a part of the frontline. Post-match Pearson reinforced the importance of needing “different options” to face different sides and Cornick has other qualities than anything else at the former Leicester boss’ disposal.
All of the forward options will play their part this season and beyond, and while some will take to City’s style of play like a duck to water, ala Conway, others will take time to fit in and develop in a new system and under a new manager.
It's also worth noting, Pearson and his coaching staff have worked tirelessly to improve the fitness of his players, particularly in pre-season and given the nature of pressing from the front, Cornick may need time to reach the demands of City's high-intensity style of play.
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