Daniel Jones reckons Vale should make more use of Vale striker
Vale striker Tom Pope can sometimes be heard complaining that he hasn’t had the supply inside the opposition area that he thrives on and so has not had the chances he needs as a front man.
After bagging 33 goals last season, some expected him to struggle a little this season in League One, but he has done exceptionally well with little service, netting twelve goals so far.
One player who is fill of admiration for the job the Vale striker does is Daniel Jones and he feels Vale should be supporting the front man better.
Jones said: “I talk to him about it a lot and if the ball does come out to me I am not one of these who is going to do a step-over or do a jig, I am going to knock it past someone and I am going to put the ball in the box.
there you know what is going to happen and it is up to him whether or not he gets on the end of them. “He knows that and I have said to him if you see me out
“He did against Colchester, but sometimes I have got to realise what type of ball he likes to attack. He likes the ball stood up so he can get up.
“He gets up really well and he seems to hang up there, whereas I usually fire balls in, so it is for me to change as well, which is good because it gives me another string to my bow.
“I think he does ever so well, because he gets battered from pillar to post. The other day against Crewe he was brilliant and we have got to get people around him to support because he wins a lot of headers and flick-ons and a lot of his work goes unnoticed.
“He does a lot of tracking back as well and his attitude is brilliant and I think he has been spot on.
“Tom holds the ball up really, really well. If you get the ball up to him you need to get people running off him, you can’t all of a sudden think ‘we have done our job, we have got it up to him.
“You have got to have runners off him because that is g=his game, he holds the ball up, he flicks it on and gets into the box.
“He is never going to get the ball, bring it down and beat six people and put it into the top bin, that is not his game. He knows his game and last season he got his goals with people putting the ball into the box.
“When I get the ball the first thing I look for if I am out wide is if I have got grass in front of me I will then put the ball into the box for Tom.”