Mark Hughes's Forward Line Conundrum

This week Mark Hughes talked about his pleasure at having a full squad available for selection but this is the moment when he faces the biggest test of his managerial career- how to keep a fistful of star strikers happy.

Man management has always been the key feature of the great managers but in the modern era it's become even more of a challenge, as certain clubs have stacked up massive resources- especially in the forwards.

As with so many things, in the English game it was Sir Alex Ferguson who began the trend when he juggled Andrew Cole, Dwight Yorke, Teddy Sheringham and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in the 1990s. Clubs had four decent strikers before but not four of that standard.

The United boss had the problem solved by making Cole and Yorke the first choices; in Sheringham he had player desperate to win medals at the close of his career and in Solskjaer an unusually gifted impact forward from the bench.

Arguably Hughes has it tougher, because he's got a bunch of strikers who all feel they are at their peak. It's difficult to see Carlos Tevez, Emmanuel Adebayor, Roque Santa Cruz, Craig Bellamy and Robinho all content to sit on the bench.

Injury and suspension has spared Hughes the hard decisions up to now but Santa Cruz is back in action and Adebayor is almost ready to come back after suspension. Robinho is close to a comeback after a stress fracture.

Hughes has the option of deploying three strikers and went with that option against Birmingham City. The game ended goalless and there are some doubts as to whether that system gets the best out of the talent.

Adebayor in particular, is a roving target man who can pull defences around and leave gaps for midfield and wide players to pour into. If he's paired with Bellamy's pace, the results could be stunning. In a trio of front men the mobilty of this pair will be cramped.

Santa Cruz offers a more typical target option and Tevez brings his workaholic contribution to the party. Robinho is a wild card and could be used in a more withdrawn or wider role, if required. The former Portsmouth man Benjani finds himself relegated to sixth choice.

The evidence of the early season is that Adebayor is likely to be first name on the teamsheet but the pecking order of the other quartet is difficult to be precise about. Santa Cruz does look slated for a role as back up to Adebayor but whether he sees it that way is another matter.

Bellamy's pace is hard to ignore, giving Hughes an extra option to pick open defences. When everyone is available Carlos Tevez could find himself squeezed into the supporting role that he left Manchester United to avoid and his strike rate in league games so far hasn't made a great case for a starting berth.

Tactically the manager may put out three strikers at Eastlands, which takes some pressure off but he's likely to drop to a conventional two in big away games. He has the same decisions to make in midfield where he's also got a full hand now Martin Petrov and Michael Johnson are back.

Not being in Europe will be an advantage over the season but it leaves Hughes with less significant games to give his forward talent a run out. His tactical nous and man management will be tested to the full in the coming weeks but it's a problem managers always say they want.