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True or false? A player needs to have form on the board to have a form slump. Which brings me to John Aloisi.
Players tend to find their level over time. Talent scouts often quickly spot a promising junior and the player then goes on to either exceed, meet or fall short of expectations. Ultimately the league they play in and the club they play for are a reasonable indication of the player’s ability at that point in their career. Not so with John Aloisi.
A comparison of the goal scoring feats of strikers from around the world over the last 20 years suggests that there is a chasm between John Aloisi’s reputation and his underlying ability. After plying his limited wares in Belgium, Italy, Spain and England over the “peak” years of his career, he is now creating nothing out of something in his homeland.
Statistics can always be made to dance but for strikers, games per goal tell a pretty accurate story. Other less measurable characteristics include holding the ball up, off the ball runs and pressuring opposition defenders, but let’s focus on games per goal.
A glance at the goal scoring records (league games plus internationals only) shows us that, for instance, Michael Owen scores a goal every 2.0 games, Drogba every 2.3 games and Raul every 2.2 games. Arguably, one of the best all-time records is that of Romario, who scored a goal every 1.4 games he played. Some of the less impressive career strike rates are those of Nicolas Anelka (3.0), Scott McDonald (2.6) and Dean Windass (3.1). John Aloisi? He has managed to put one past the keeper once every 3.4 games (134 goals in 454 games). This is staggeringly unimpressive.
Remember, this is not a comparison of Aloisi and the others as strikers or players. On any measure Micheal Owen, Luca Toni or Didier Drogba are clearly better strikers. The point is that Aloisi, at the level he has found himself at over his career, has been impotent at best, in front of goal. Essentially he has built his career around shanking shots wide of the target when his pace and skill allows him to get a shot in. To further emphasise the point, the top goal scorers in the Gladesville-Hornsby Premier League last season would have scored at a better rate than Aloisi.
So don’t be fooled – there is no “form slump” for Aloisi. The facts show that he has chronically underperformed throughout his career suggesting he has been playing at a level well above where he belongs for the duration. The recent glaring misses are not out of character, they are just more of the same.
Maybe we can find a spot for him on the bench for Normanhurst Eagles.
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