5 strikers who were forced to play as wingers?

We often see wingers being transformed into forwards as a means to maximize their scoring potential. This is what happened with Cristiano Ronaldo as the Real Madrid star was once a winger who blasted in from the flanks to cause all kinds of problems to the opponents.

Meanwhile, there have been cases where pure strikers have been forced to play as wingers in order to accommodate a more potent goalscorer in the middle. Over the years, with the tendency of playing with two strikers diminishing, managers have shunted center-forwards on the wings in order to maximize the scoring potential of their team.

Jose Mourinho has done it, Pep Guardiola too – and so has Max Allegri and Laurent Blanc. So here are 5 strikers that had to play on the wings…

---

#5 Mario Mandzukic

If a list of underrated strikers is complied, then Mario Mandzukic’s name would be among the entrants. The Croat is a well-built striker who has a tendency of scoring important goals. His physique and ability to bring team-mates into play makes him a perfect target man for any team that he plays for.

Unless, of course, for Max Allegri. At Juventus now, Mandzukic has to play on the wings and shield that flank from attacking threats. Mandzukic’s tendency to press defenders and work his socks off mean that the former Atletico man is the perfect foil for a role such as that.

Another reason – the main one – is the presence of Gonzalo Higuain in attack. In order to accommodate the Argentine, Allegri has to bench the former Bayern man or play him on the flanks – and he opted for the latter.

#4 Edinson Cavani

Cavani is ripping apart defences for fun now

Remember when Edinson Cavani was having a hard time to score goals and most people thought that he is just… crap? Well, that feels like so long ago I can barely remember it – but it did happen when Zlatan Ibrahimovic was at Paris-Saint Germain.

The Swede is a star and playing him anywhere apart from his natural position beats the purpose of having him in the team. As a result, the former Napoli man had to be shifted to the wings. It was a rather bizarre move, but completely understandable and he wasn't all that bad at it either.

In the end, the Uruguyan’s performance dipped and he wasn’t the scorer that PSG signed in the first place. However, after the departure of Ibra, the former Palermo starlet is back in optimum form.

Actually, optimum is perhaps an understatement – he is in God mode as he scored 49 goals from 50 games last term and is already on 21 from just 18 games in all competitions this season, the highest among all players in Europe’s top 5 leagues.

#3 Zlatan Ibrahimovic

Ibrahumovic wasn't happy when played on the flank

Let’s talk about Zlatan Ibrahimovic now. The enigmatic character is one of the beloved footballers in the whole world. His headstrong personality and a witty sense of humour has made him a much admired figure in football.

But he also has a rage about him – and you wouldn’t want to activate that part of Ibrahimovic.

However, Pep Guardiola did that and the former Juventus forward wasn’t one bit happy about it. He even wrote an entire chapter in his book about what he said to Guardiola and what he thought of him – and it wasn't pleasantries for sure.

The former Barcelona boss incurred his wrath when he chose to play Lionel Messi as the center-forward in a false 9 role, shunting Ibra on the wing – something that didn’t go down well with the current Manchester United man.

The former Sweden captain’s form went down and so did his desire to play for the Catalans. In the end he was let go by the Blaugranas and he has played through the center ever since.

#2 David Villa

El Guaje had a wonderful first season with Barcelona

So this actually kind of feels like a cause and effect thing now. After the failure and subsequent departure of Zlatan Ibrahimovic from Barcelona, Guardiola realized the type of forward that he needs in order to accommodate Messi in the middle shouldn’t be a complete individualist while also having a sense of individualism at the same time.

Confusing, isn’t it? Well, that was what David Villa was for Barcelona – selfless enough to not be pissed off about Messi playing in the center and selfish enough to score goals from the left with his uncanny sense of scoring.

And it worked out just fine for Barcelona as the Catalans went on to win the double in El Guaje’s first season with the club. The thing is, Villa was far more adequately skilled to play from the left – something he did with Spain alongside Fernando Torres in their World Cup winning campaign in 2010.

And right after that, he did the same for Barcelona as he scored an impressive 23 goals in that campaign.

#1 Samuel Eto’o

Eto'o won consecutive doubles with two different teams

Talking about cause and effect, this is where the cause had its root at. Pep Guardiola’s strenuous relationship with the Cameroonian meant that the legendary African footballer wasn’t going to be at Barcelona after helping them to a treble-winning campaign.

To replace Eto’o, Barcelona swapped him with Ibrahimovic – and then the wheel started to spin.

At Inter, Eto’o spent most of his time on the wings when not in possession. The former Real Madrid starlet actually sacrificed his own skillset to accommodate the more predatory instincts of Diego Milito.

You see, Eto’o was perhaps the better goalscorer too, but his supreme physicality and technical ability convinced Mourinho to play him on the right as a defensive-winger-cum-forward – and he carried it out to perfection.

Inter won the treble that season while Barcelona failed to overcome them in the semi-final. The Zlatan Ibra experiment also failed and David Villa was bought in the following season to be played on the left. After that Ibrahimovic when to Milan and then to PSG, which forced Cavani to play on the flanks.

Someone should make The Butterfly Effect 4 from these events.