If we signed Diego Costa instead of James Collins, would he have been just as disappo

[TheFamous1875]

With the Spanish excuses being trotted out at an ironically break-neck pace following their unexpected and calamitous exit from the World Cup, it got me thinking about our own former square-peg James Collins.

He didn't fit our 'system' (or lack there of) and it was claimed that had we been able to facilitate him with a style that suited his game, he would've been a success at ER.

Diego Costa has left about the same impression on the Spanish team this summer that Collins has left on our team last season (unforeseen failure) and it got me thinking: if we had Diego Costa instead of James Collins, and we gave him the exact same service and the exact same team mates as Collins had, would he be just as much of a failure? Or was Collins just that bad?

It rears the question of the importance of styles of play and how players are deployed when arguably one of the best strikers in the world playing for arguably the best team in the world can't score for toffee (and surprisingly, I'm not talking about Hibs!)

[Thecat23]

Collins was a hard working player who lacked confidence in a team that created very little. A striker usually has 4 chances in a game and out 4 he's stick one away. Collins had 1 per game if your lucky. We didn't play to the strikers strengths that's for sure!

I think in a better Hibs team he'd have scored a lot more IMO.

[jacomo]

Just a guess, but I reckon Diego Costa would have scored a lot of goals in the SPFL last season, even at Hibs.

I take the point, though Spain had a recognisable and successful tiki-taka which didn't seem suited to a classic No.9. I am not sure what you would call Hibs' style.

I understood TB's intention to play at a higher tempo and get more service into the box - hoping that Collins would do better as the focus for crosses etc. Shame he was such a pr*** about it though.

[Baader]

Diego Costa has had two poor games in keeping with his Spanish teammates. He averages a goal every second game in La Liga pretty much.

I think Spain should have went for Villa ahead of him, or even the so called 'false 9' but Costa would have rattled in the goals at this level even with our poor service. Griffiths did. Collins just wasnt up to it.

[Smartie]

I think a lot of it is down to the style of player as well as the way the team plays.

Griffiths could create something out of nothing. Lionel Messi would have scored about 40 goals in our team last year - these players can create for themselves.

Others need players to create for them for them to thrive. McCoist, Lineker, Kris Boyd etc would have toiled in our team last year. That's not to say they are bad players - in decent teams that create chances these players thrive, and their teams are poorer for not having them in the team to finish the chances.

I think Costa needs chances laid on a plate for him. It's a different game against the class of the Dutch and Chilean defenders, playing in a struggling team than playing against Albacete, Cadiz etc.

I just don't know what Collins was. Not a target man, not a finisher, not a creater. I wanted it to work but it didn't. My last hope was that he was going to be an O'Connor - he was bang average when Williamson hoofed it up at him but immense when playing alongside mobile finishers in a team that played it on the deck. Riordan would get the goals and the plaudits but more often than not O'Connor did his dirty work for him.

Alas, we'll never know.