Joe Pigott finally reaching his potential as he tries to save AFC Wimbledon from relegation

AFC Wimbledon top scorer Joe Pigott was once again the difference as he proved his quality in front of goal at this level, scoring the all important winner against relegation rivals Northampton Town.

The Maidstone-born striker had very little to feed off in truth but he kept plugging away, running the line brilliantly, constantly bringing his teammates into the game which something he is well known for.

It took until the 89th minute for him to have any real effort on goal but when the opportunity presented itself, he wasn’t going to let it pass him by, firing into the net following a goalmouth scramble in the box after a corner.

He had been struggling for goals of late, failing to net in his side’s last nine outings with his most recent strike before the one against the Cobblers coming back at the start of February when he netted a brace against Wigan Athletic.

Despite being on a poor run of form in front of goal, the 27-year-old continues to get picked regularly and even when he does get taken out of the side, he tends to come off the bench with the club’s management knowing just how much of a threat he is in front of goal.

Pigott has 16 goals now this term, already bettering last season’s tally by seven and still has ten games to go to make it past the 20 goal mark which would be a fine total for a player in a side battling at the bottom.

The striker has found it tough to break through anywhere after leaving fellow London side Charlton Athletic back in 2016 where he came through the ranks, however he only made 12 first-team appearances for the Addicks as he spent several spells out on loan at the likes of Gillingham, Luton Town and Newport County.

He found it tough to make much of an impact at any of the clubs he went out on loan to and even had to spend a spell in Non League before he joined the Dons, making 30 appearances for Maidstone United in 2017/18.

He then joined AFC Wimbledon in January 2018 for an undisclosed fee, the first time he had been signed by a club for a transfer fee and was given a real lifeline to get his career on track and reach the potential which he initially showed at Charlton.

Since then, he has gone onto make well over 100 appearances for the club, netting 40 league goals and has become a particularly key player for the side, especially this season where his goals have kept his side in the mix to avoid the drop.

While his strike against the Cobblers was a tap in, he is capable of scoring all types of goals which he has shown in his two and a bit years at Wimbledon and he continues to be a player who evolves in the blue and yellow and constantly improves, week in, week out.

He has become far more settled since moving back to the capital and has already made more league outings (126)  for the Dons than at the seven other clubs he has played for previously combined which shows just how well he is settling in and progressing.

His playing style is very similar to that of Leeds United striker Patrick Bamford, both lead the line really well and work exceptionally hard for their sides. Both with and without the ball are capable of making great runs which often aren’t seen by teammates but may leave space for others to profit.

Bamford was unfortunate not to get an England call up in the last few days but while Pigott is still a very long way off even being mentioned in that conversation, the more goals he continues to score for Wimbledon, the higher the chance of clubs further up the EFL will start paying attention to the forward.

The 27-year-old will have a pivotal role to play between now and the end of the season with the Dons only in the drop zone on goal difference and still have two games in hand on Northampton who occupy a place which ensures safety in the division.

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