Danny Cashman scored twenty goals for Worthing last season, and he’s just signed for Crawley Town! In this in-depth analysis, I break down his profile and explain why he was one of the best #10’s in the National League.
Cashman is an incredible technician. His stature, mobility, nimble turning radius, technical quality, operation speed, spatial awareness and intelligence to use his body to shield the ball and turn away from pressure means he excels in small spaces.
He can collect the ball in close proximity to opponents and dribble past multiple players, before threading passes through the tightest of spaces to find teammates. He does this without making it obvious he’s about to release the ball. A real ‘blink and you’ll miss it’ type.
Cashman wants to be given the freedom to drop deeper to overload the press, drift wide, or stretch play vertically by running in-behind. He can either receive to feet or stretch the pitch.
After Pearce’s departure, Cashman took on more responsibility. However, he still wasn’t the conductor of attacks last season. The speed at which Cashman plays at means he lacks ‘pausa’, although this aspect of his game was developing as the season went on.
This means that Cashman didn’t dictate attacks for Worthing, and wasn’t their main creative outlet. Instead, he complemented other good, creative players. But that makes sense when we consider the rest of his profile.
In fact, I’d argue Cashman would be even more effective on the right-side of the pitch in these instances. As he doesn’t tend to dictate attacks from a wide left position, and wants to be released with runs in-behind, the angles would be more favourable for a right-footer.
However, his direct style means he regularly loses possession, which isn’t conducive to controlling possession and sustaining attacks. Cashman works hard, defends with intensity, and tracks back. However, his stature means he isn’t a physical presence when it comes to winning duels.
Considering this, and his direct style, I believe Cashman is better suited to defending at the top of the pitch or out wide, where there would be more players positioned centrally/behind the ball, rather than being an #8 with more build-up & duel-winning responsibility.
Cashman has a fairly limited profile in so far as he doesn’t yet dictate attacks, or have the tools to reliably break down low-blocks through crossing into the penalty area. He also doesn’t offer loads in transition because he lacks the power in his dribbling/ball-striking.
Cashman is a ‘pockets’ player who excels in tight spaces with clever movement, but he needs quality around him to get the very best out of him. If he can begin to dictate attacks, his profile will become even more valuable. He already has the mentality and quality for it.
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