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A midfielder who arrives late into the penalty area to score. Not the same as a shadow striker who plays behind the forward - the box crasher starts deeper and times runs to arrive just as the ball comes in. Lampard was the original, but Gündoğan, Bellingham, and Rice all do it now. Getting into the box without the ball is an underrated skill.
Frank Lampard built his career on box crashing - he scored 177 Premier League goals from midfield by timing runs perfectly, arriving unmarked at the back post or edge of the area just as crosses or cutbacks came in.
Robbie
Feb 1, 2026
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