‘ McBurnie must find his selfish streak to win over doubters’
Wales legend James urges forward to focus on goals
LEIGHTON James watched Oliver McBurnie score 24 goals for Swansea City in the 2018/ 19 season and earn himself a Scottish record £ 20 million transfer to Sheffield United in the process.
Yet, the Welsh great was still frustrated by the striker’s style of play, by his refusal to remain in and around the penalty box and concentrate on converting chances in particular.
James has told the forward he has to change his game and develop a selfish streak, just like the one his legendary former team- mate Ian Rush had, in order to succeed at the very highest level.
McBurnie, who failed to net for the national team in their 1- 0 defeat to Slovakia in a Nations League match in Trnava on Sunday afternoon, has now made 14 international appearances without being on target.
Steve Clarke, the Scotland manager, declared himself satisfied with his player’s all- round contribution during a game which the visitors dominated and expressed confidence he will open his account for his country soon.
However, his lack of success in front of goal has led to scathing criticism from many members of the Tartan Army and calls for Leigh Griffiths and Lawrence Shankland to be given run- outs ahead of him.
Many renowned strikers in the modern game aren’t prolific scorers; Olivier Giroud famously failed to register a single shot on target as France won Russia 2018 despite featuring in all eight of their matches.
But former Swansea winger James, who scored 10 goals in 54 appearances for Wales, feels McBurnie would benefit greatly from altering his approach.
“I saw a lot of Oli at City,” he said. “He certainly works his socks off for the team. But that is to the detriment of him being in scoring positions when it matters. I have always said that he spends too much time working hard for the team.
“He spends less time in the middle than any striker I have ever known. That has always been my criticism of him. He should get himself in the box. That is the only place good strikers score goals.
“He isn’t going to score goals chasing down full- backs. Somebody needs to get a hold of him and say: ‘ Listen, I admire your work rate, it’s fantastic, I’m really impressed with it, but your job is to score goals and you’re not doing that’.
“I totally understood what Steve was saying on Sunday night, but Oli is a centre forward who is employed to score goals and win games.
He spends less time in the middle than any striker
Sometimes you have to be selfish. He’s not. He puts the team before himself.”
James added: “I played on the wing. If I had found my centre forward on the wing I would have told him: ‘ What are you doing here son? Get out of my way, get in the box, I will get the ball to you’.
“Saying strikers in the modern game aren’t just there to stop the ball going into the net is like saying goalkeepers are no longer meant to keep the ball out of the net. That’s ridiculous. They are. They are in the team to score goals and win games. End of story. I defy anybody to tell me different.”
James played with Rush in the Welsh team for many years and reckons his compatriot is the perfect example of a striker who worked hard inside the penalty area and reaped the rewards of that.
“I played with a couple of half- decent strikers in my career,” he said. “I played with a lad called Ian Rush. He wasn’t bad.
“Rushy worked very hard. In fact, he worked harder than any centre forward I ever played with in my life. But nobody remembers him as a work rate player, they remember him as one of the greatest strikers to ever play the game.
“He was the best defender Liverpool ever had. If you defend from the front the ball doesn’t get to the back. When his side had the ball he just played in the box and he was the best I have ever seen.
“Of course, Rushy had a massive advantage when he played with Liverpool. He had Kenny Dalglish up front alongside him. He is one of the best players I have ever seen. How much would you have to pay for those two now?”
McBurnie has been a regular starter for Sheffield United in the Premier League since moving to Bramall Lane last year.
But the 24- year- old has only scored six times for them in 49 games and has failed to net for either club or country in the 2020/ 21 season.
“It is different playing Championship football to playing in the Premier League or playing the international game,” said James. “There is no comparison.
“You have to do what you’re good at, what you are in the team for. He isn’t there to close down full- backs. It might sound a bit harsh, but McBurnie has to put himself before the team.
“His unselfishness is commendable. He puts in a lot of effort. But he has 10 teammates on the field. He should let them defend and focus on scoring goals. No goals in 14 games isn’t a very good strike rate.”