Bradford City star looking to roll clocks back to 2022/23 this season: View | OneFootball

Bradford City striker Andy Cook will look to replicate his goalscoring form from the 2022-23 season and help the club achieve promotion this season.

Every club in world football desires a goalscorer amongst their squad of players at every level, as goals are what win football games. Andy Cook has been the consistent goalscorer at the club for Bradford City, and the player will be looking to fire the Bantams to promotion come May.

The forward has been ever-present for the club since initially joining on loan from Tranmere Rovers in January 2021. Despite some negativity across small elements of the fanbase who criticise the player for his overall play, he has become somewhat of a fan favourite at the club.

However, Cook has silenced his doubters on several occasions, including the 2022-23 Sky Bet League Two season, where the player went on to win the league's top scorer award at the end of that season.

This year, Cook will look to replicate his goalscoring form and his goals can contribute to any success Graham Alexander’s men have this season.

Andy Cook has delivered goals for Bradford City every season since signing

Cook came to the club in January 2021, initially on loan from Tranmere Rovers, and incredibly, became the club’s top scorer that season, netting eight goals in 21 appearances to finish the season under former duo Mark Truman and Connor Sellars, who held the unusual joint managerial position at the time.

Going into the next season under manager Derek Adams, who joined the club as manager after winning promotion to Sky Bet League One with Morecambe FC, Cook was the first signing for Adams, signing a permanent deal at the club.

Adams was quoted by the BBC as saying: "He is a player with many qualities and one I was keen to ensure we brought in, having watched him closely last season."

After the sacking of Adams, former Premier League manager Mark Hughes came into the club with much media attention and ultimately has been the best manager to get the most out of Cook in terms of goals.

Last season, Cook scored 17 league goals for the club with eight assists in 41 appearances.

Working with a legendary striker like Mark Hughes seemed to help Cook improve his overall game as the striker. Although he has been known for his impressive goalscoring ability throughout non-league, Cook struggled to hit those same numbers in the EFL before working with Hughes.

Many City supporters have noticed that Cook seems to be at his best overall on the pitch when he is lean and fit. This seems to be a problem for the players from the outside, as there have been times throughout his years with the club when Cook has looked on the heavier side, impacting him on the pitch.

One way Hughes managed to be the best out of Cook was to drop the player from the starting line-up when he wasn’t in form and didn’t look fit, maybe to reinstall that hunger inside the player for him to be in the best shape he could be and to put that extra effort into contributing to the team while scoring goals.

Fans may recall that Cook was dropped to the bench for a home win against local rivals Harrogate Town and subsequently only played limited minutes from the bench over the next five games before being reinstalled in the starting line-up against his former club Mansfield Town in a 1-1 draw in which Cook scored the only goal for the Bantams.

Talking to Sky Sports at the time, Cook commented on this spell out the team, saying: "I just had to grin and bear it. I kept my head down, kept training well and doing what I could when I got on the pitch."

Cook scored 15 more goals that season after Hughes removed him from the starting XI, bringing his total to 28 goals in 46 games at the conclusion of the 2022-23 season.

Current manager Graham Alexander already has the tools at his disposal to follow the blueprint set by former Bantam boss Mark Hughes, which seemed to help Andy Cook improve his overall game and, of course, score almost 30 goals in the league alone.

Competition for places will help Cook stay focused and work hard to keep his place in the team. Options like Tyler Smith, Jake Young, Calum Kavanagh, and Vadaine Oliver are all vying for those two striker slots in the first eleven. It was Cook, supported by Kavanagh, that led the line on Saturday as the Bantams started the season with a 2-1 win at MK Dons.

Furthermore, the good news for supporters is that Cook has looked lean and fit over the preseason and showed his ability, most notably in the key pre-season fixture at home against Sunderland, which was probably the biggest test for the club over the summer.

Now at 33, the play style of Cook as a throwback striker with strength and power being key attributes. The player is often involved in physical altercations with defenders at this level, so it’s likely. Unfortunately, there aren't many more years left at this level for Cook.

Should Cook manage to rediscover the form that won him the Golden Boot in 2022-23 through staying fit and focused due to competition for places, the striker’s goals could be what finally fires the club to promotion and would certainly make Cook a modern legend at the club.