Category: #AnthonyScouts

5 strikers Arsenal could sign this summer to spearhead their promising attack

5 strikers Arsenal could sign this summer to spearhead their promising attack

With so much uncertainty surrounding Arsenal’s striker trio, Mikel Arteta’s search for a long-term target has arguably become more urgent in recent weeks.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang has not played for the club since he returned late from a trip to France in early December, and as a result being stripped of the club captaincy. He is currently away representing Gabon at the African Cup of Nations.

It remains to be seen whether he’ll be included in a Arsenal matchday squad again.

Even if there is some sort of making up between player and manager, he is still a 32-year-old with 18 months on his current contract. Arteta admitted recently that there was a “cloud” over the striking situation at the club, and that is true.

Alexandre Lacazette is in fine form, and Arteta’s current leading man up front, but is already 30 and has six months remaining on his current deal. Eddie Nketiah is another whose deal expires in six months. If an offer arrives for him in this months transfer window, it will be considered.

Gabriel Martinelli is thriving on the left-wing – an area Arsenal were intending to strengthen long-term – while Folarin Balogun appears to be on the brink of a loan move to Middlesborough in the Sky Bet Championship.

It is evident that Arsenal will need a striker in the summer. The Aubameyang and Lacazette situation could act as catalysts to accelerate the pursuit of a forward for the long-term.

So, who might Arteta and his recruitment staff be looking to fill the potential void at the Emirates?

In the last summer transfer window, the club made six signings aged 23 or under. A clear plan and identity in attempting to shape and rejuvenate an ailing squad.

So that will probably be the same route Arsenal take in their striker search. A player who is young, with a high-ceiling in terms of potential, one who could be moulded to be the club’s main-man for years to come:

Dusan Vlahovic, Fiorentina

Arguably one of Europe’s most potent goalscorers right now.

21-year-old Dusan Vlahovic is currently being touted around with some of the continent’s biggest clubs linked with a move for the Serbian hotshot.

It’s easy to see why: his record in front of goal this season is simply astonishing, with 17 Serie A goals from 20 appearances. Only Robert Lewandowski has scored more goals in Europe’s top five leagues.

One of the first striking elements of Dušan Vlahović’s characteristics is his striking size. At 6’3”, he stands quite literally, head and shoulders above others, especially some defenders who are tasked with taming him during a game. This has all the makings of a familiar fairytale story when it comes to young prodigy’s especially strikers, that their size immediately strikes fear into their opponents.

Like Erling Braut Haaland, Dušan Vlahović is built of a similar ilk.

Vlahović is a potent and clinical penalty box presence, a devastating finisher and his 16 goals in Serie A this season showing that at the tender age of just 21, he’s got so much to give in goal scoring situations. It’s also worth noting that this figure is backed up by four penalty goals.

He is a very deadly penalty taker, with 17 goals from 17 career attempts to date.

While Vlahović possesses the frame and tenacity to impose himself, he is certainly not short of pace, in fact, the quickness at which he reaches top speed is superb, and that element coupled with a fire in his belly is a frightening sight for even the best defenders in Serie A.

He offers such a dynamic threat in behind. For a striker of his stature and presence, his movement is surprisingly very effective. Intelligent and varied, and it is certainly possible that he learns to adapt his movement to suit the demand that derives from Fiorentina’s attacking play. He is so skilled at timing his runs beyond the defensive line to keep himself onside. He is a real danger when he is through on goal too, and is very content to shoot once the opportunity presents itself – his xG per 90 (0.59) is truly indicative of a forward who gets into dangerous areas, as one would expect from a player with such incisive movement.

Good movement, clinical finishing – Vlahović already looks the complete young package. As a bonus, he works hard off the ball too, he is tenacious, and plays the game like his life depends on it. He is not the type of player to be around when you have the ball, he will hustle and bustle until he regains possession, a real terrier-like performer.

All things considered, Vlahović has quickly morphed into a well-rounded forward, one well suited to the demands of the modern game. He holds a lot of rawness in his game for managers to work with, whether at Fiorentina or elsewhere. While there is a lot of hype surrounding his future at the top-level, one should in fact wonder how well he would transition at this stage to a more stringent and methodical tactical framework.

Vlahovic’s contract with Fiorentina is due to expire in 2023, and the indications are that he will not be signing a new one. That means the Italian side know they need to sell in the next two transfer windows if they are to maximise their return. 

With his potential to get even better, its a proposition that Arsenal simply cannot afford to ignore.

Jonathan David, LOSC Lille

The 21-year-old Lille forward has been on Arsenal’s radar for some time, but the North London club aren’t the only ones with Liverpool, West Ham and Paris Saint-Germain also scouring for his services.

Since his move to Lille from Belgium outfit Gent in the summer of 2020, the Canadian has never looked back, although he did endure a difficult start – going on a run of seven games without a goal. However, in the second half of last season, his form picked up. Eleven of his 13 league goals in 2020-21 came after the turn of the year, as Lille done the unthinkable, finishing the campaign as French Ligue 1 champions.

This season, Lille have struggled to maintain their form as they currently sit in mid-table in Ligue 1. However, Jonathan David has continued his tremendous development. He is Ligue 1’s current top scorer with 12 goals from 19 appearances. In a league including Kylian Mbappe, Neymar and Lionel Messi, that is a superb feat.

An extraordinary forward, blessed with great pace, skill, tenaciousness, trickery and acceleration. The Canadian is tremendously versatile too, capable of playing anywhere in attack; as a no.9, right-winger, left-winger, and a no.10. If fast and speedy players are your type, then Jonathan David is your man. A player whose game is based on an exciting blend of technique, mental sharpness and tremendous physical attributes.

The Canadian has excelled in his work-rate and off-the-ball attributes. So far this campaign, he is recording 5.39 successful pressures per 90minutes. He is in the top 10 percent of forwards in Europe’s top five leagues when it comes to pressures off the ball owing to his tremendous energy, enthusiasm and work rate. David has traded off some of that defensive work, and remodeled himself as a poacher in front of goal. A record of 0.48 non-penalty goals per 90 is brilliant and is simply going to get better.

He possess the mobility, intensity, and defensive know-how in both positioning and angling to excel for a club like Arsenal, and only grow in his pressing ability.

In possession, David is more than capable of dropping deep in the build up and linking up with speedy runners sprinting in behind. Even if he’s not as creative as Lacazette, he could easily grow into that type of player under the influence of a possession based coach like Arteta. Further, his desire to play with an open body shape rather than with his back to goal would serve Arsenal in their quest to score more goals.

David’s scoring form in Ligue 1 over the past two seasons, and for Canada where he’s been the top CONCACAF scorer in World Cup Qualifying, suggests he could score more goals for Arsenal than their current forwards. David’s movement in the box is superb, particularly in finding little pockets of space in which he can finish off chances created by speedy, dribbling wingers, which Arsenal possess to an even greater degree than Lille. 

Jonathan David’s attacking stats this season compare well to Lacazette and far surpass Aubameyang. 

Notably, David hasn’t scored from outside of the box this season, and the vast majority of his goals (9) have been scored in the eighteen yard box. This suits Arsenal’s current attacking abilities, where they look to build up play from back-to-front, looking to score a high number of their chances in the penalty box through incisive and intricate passing moves, including their counter attacking prowess, which he would flourish in due to having a very direct, vertical style of play with his raw dribbling and running power.

At 21-years-old, the potential is clear. It is unbelievably exciting to imagine what the Canadian forward might achieve in the coming years. Arsenal paid Lille big money for Nicolas Pepe in 2019 – so could they return to the Stade Pierre Mauroy in search of another new hitman?

Alexander Isak, Real Sociedad

(Photo by ANDER GILLENEA/AFP via Getty Images)

Another one of Europe’s most exciting forwards, and a player Arsenal will of course be closely monitoring in the coming months.

Sweden international Alexander Isak signed a new contract in July that not only removed Borussia Dortmund’s €35 million buy-back option, but extended his commitment with Real Sociedad until 2026.

Which means any club looking to prize him away from the Reale Arena, would need to pay big bucks for Sociedad to consider selling. However, Arsenal showed in the summer that they are able and willing to flex some financial muscle in transfer fees to get their targets, and Isak will be no different.

The 22-year-old caught the eye at the European Championships last summer – but those who watch the Spanish La Liga closely will be familiar with his extraordinary abilities long before that. Last season, he hit 17 league goals in 34 games as Real Sociedad finished in a Europa League place.

With a rate of 0.65 non-penalty goals per 90 — the fourth-highest in La Liga and level with Atletico Madrid’s Luis Suarez — it’s no wonder Arsenal’s scouts have been following his progress. This season, however, his goals have dried up somewhat, with only four goals from 16 appearances so far, though considerations will need to be taken given his age and development.

He still offers his team much more than his goals, and that has shown in La Liga this season. Isak’s technical ability is largely fantastic. Despite often receiving possession with his body too square to the ball, his ability to spin and open his posture up is great, as is his awareness to make first-time layoffs and combine with close-by team-mates.

Although his first touch lacks consistency, as do some of his short passes, he showcases consistently excellent close control in tight spaces and an ability to shift the ball and his body in alternate directions very sharply – a skill made all the more impressive when you appreciate his tall, rangy frame. This can also be seen in some of his one-on-one attempts, where he is comfortable shifting possession onto either side of his body.

His positioning and movement for the ball are exemplary too. His sense of how and when to drop closer to the ball are great for linking play from side to side and creating overloads from the flank. Equally impressive is his use of this technique in executing double movements to make sharp runs into the drawn-open channels, putting to use his blistering levels of acceleration.

One intriguing aspect of Arsenal’s interest in the forward is his good on-field relationship with Martin Odegaard during the Norwegian’s spell at Sociedad in 2019/20. They both combined effectively on several occasions, with Odegaard often the provided and a source of Sociedad’s goals with his tremendous creative abilities.

Isak has also proven himself to be a formidable counter-attacking threat. He is comfortable offering and operating down both the left and right sides of the pitch, a testament to his mobility and technical quality; his link play and speed with and without the ball add up to him being a clinical target up front.

A bigger team prying him away almost feels like an inevitability for the 21-year-old, and there is no doubt many clubs would benefit from his presence up front, including Arsenal and Mikel Arteta.

Patrik Schick, Bayer Leverkusen

One of the stars of last summer’s European Championships and one of the leading lights in the German Bundesliga this season, Bayer Leverkusen’s Patrik Schick is a player who deserves rapturous acclaim these past six or seven months.

The Czech hitman has scored an astonishing 18 goals in 15 Bundesliga matches this season, with an expected goals rate at 0.82 goals per 90, and his non-penalty xG sitting at an 0.77 pitting him in the top 3 strikers in Europe’s top-five leagues. A goalscorer Arsenal could do well in possessing next season.

Many will remember Schick’s name in relation to his stunning goal from just over the half-way line against Scotland in the Euros.

In fact, his performance at the Euros where he hit 5 goals in as many games finishing as the tournament’s joint top-scorer with Cristiano Ronaldo, many argued Schick should have been in the team of the tournament rather than Romelu Lukaku, and rightly so. The 25-year-old was a true attacking force to be reckoned with at the Euros, as Scotland sadly found out. Schick is already on the list of several clubs around Europe, and yet another flawless Leverkusen talent who could be on the move in the near future.

Given Schick’s large frame, he naturally fits the bill of a traditional target man. Not since Olivier Giroud, have Arsenal possessed a true target-man, and Schick certainly has the assets to back this statement up too. Statistically, he performs respectably winning 46.3% of his 3.63 aerial duels per 90 in all competitions this season.

If players are willing to run off of Schick’s shoulder, then he will oblige by winning headers and helping the ball on. However, he shows excellent awareness of where his teammates are as the ball is in the air, as well as the positioning of the defenders and specifically the proximity of his marker.

Schick can adjust accordingly and can bring the ball down and hold up play when many forwards would simply look to head the ball on. The Czech forward is a tremendous outlet when using his as a focal point in attack, holding the ball up whilst bringing his fellow attackers into play.

Schick is able with the ball on the floor too. Whilst he provides a viable option to hit the ball too aerially, he has a good first touch and can play first time with either foot. He doesn’t panic in possession which will of course be useful in Arteta’s possession-based philosophy and he can receive, hold play up, and find a nearby teammate whilst under pressure. 

Schick is far from being some kind of uber-physical and immobile centre-forward. He has a lean frame, and a deft touch in possession. He can receive line-breaking passes and play first time, as already mentioned, but he can also unlock defences with innovative passes and good vision. It’s why his partnerships with the likes of Florian Wirtz and Moussa Diaby has proven so devastating for Leverkusen this season.

Schick has quality holding the ball up with dribbling ability as well. He keeps the ball close as he dribbles, and is better at navigating tighter areas than he is driving forward on the ball.

Under Gerardo Seoane, Bayer Leverkusen have opted for 4-2-3-1, and in that set up he’s looked to take advantage of the strength of his wide players and the emergence of Florian Wirtz. Spearheading that attack is Patrik Schick. At 6’3” with a lean but strong frame, you’d be forgiven for assuming that Schick operates as a traditional target man. That would be a disservice to him as he is far more well-rounded, and more complete.

With Arsenal trying to play a fluid style, the movement of the forwards is essential to pulling that off. A striker in this system must be able to perform single or double movements to either become part of the build-up play centrally or create space for others to run in to.

One of the first things you notice about Schick is that despite his frame, he’s not just living by sitting up on the back line. He will, if needed drop into space and make himself available to receive the ball, and bounce it either to Wirtz or a wide player and then advance into space to become an option further up field, and its in the penalty box where he comes to life, scoring all types of goals but more importantly showcasing why he has got to be considered as one of the best strikers on the continent.

With any forward coming into the Premier League you do worry about the physical attributes of the player and that should be no concern for the Patrick Schick. He is a player Arteta should consider signing this summer to boost their quota in attack, Schick is a player ready for the next step in his career and Arsenal who are progressively improving under Arteta’s stewardship may prove to be the perfect move for the incredibly promising forward.

Ivan Toney, Brentford

A big wildcard pick in comparison to the players on this list, but Brentford’s Ivan Toney is certainly a player Arsenal should seriously be watching. The 25-year-old certainly proved himself last season, scoring a record 31 goals in the Championship.

With more eyes on him this year, he set the tone for what he would bring to the Premier League on the opening day against Arsenal.

Despite not scoring on the day, he was arguably the most influential player on the pitch — as highlighted at the time. Prepared to play with his back to goal, he bullied and dominated Ben White and Pablo Mari to build a platform for Brentford to attack from.

Toney has grown considerably since then, and continues to be a true worthy opponent for the Premier League’s best defenders, just ask Virgil Van Dijk, Raphael Varane and Ruben Dias.

Although Toney has six goals to Mbeumo’s three in the Premier League, the latter has hit the woodwork seven times to Toney’s zero. (Brentford have hit the woodwork 10 times as a team. Only Arsenal, 12, have done it more often in the division this season).

Toney had also made the most open-play passes leading to shots (25) for the club this season, showing that he is an incredibly creative forward. Whether it be winning aerial duels, retaining the ball himself or winning fouls from long balls up to him, he is laying the groundwork for Brentford to be such a competitive force so far this campaign. For progressive passing, he’s given a 98 out of 99 rating by smarterscout.

His defensive contributions also display he is a well-rounded striker who could lead the line in many respects, Certainly a player Arsenal could do with. He is in the top percentile amongst strikers in Europe’s top five leagues for Aerial duels won per 90 (4.65), clearances per 90 (1.24) and interceptions per 90 (0.71).

Certainly the next step is for him to get more goals in the big time, but that can’t be considered as a fault of his, but more so a problem of Brentford’s in terms of the quality of their attacking play. If Toney was at Arsenal, he’d be guaranteed goals with the likes of Saka, Odegaard, Smith-Rowe and Martinelli creating goal opportunities for him.

Though in fairness, he quality of chances the 25-year-old has had this season have not been great, as he only had an xG of 4.4 (2.8 when excluding penalties) after Brentford’s first 19 matches. In short respect, with four goals scored, he had as many goals as the quality of his chances determine he should at this point in the season – a tally he would need to improve if he does harbour any ambitions of playing for one of the big teams in the country.

According to many reports, Toney is being strongly considered by Gareth Southgate for England. If the striker wants to break into squad ahead of the 2022 World Cup in November and December, he may consider whether a move to a bigger club will help his progress.

Toney being a very good profile for what Arsenal could need post-Lacazette-and-Aubameyang and Brentford being willing to sell are two different conversations altogether, however. Though, Brentford do hold a model in which they develop their talents and sell them for big money and Toney is no different, considering his vital importance to Thomas Frank and Brentford.

#AnthonyScouts🕵🏾‍♂️ pick: Dusan Vlahovic

Alexis Mac Allister: The midfield maestro Brighton have always needed

Alexis Mac Allister: The midfield maestro Brighton have always needed

We’ve all grown accustomed to Brighton’s one recurring struggle these past 18 months, one which has held them back from realizing their full potential under the fine and craft tutelage of highly-rated tactician Graham Potter.

It’s been their inability to put the ball in the back of the net consistently whether during Premier League matches or in consecutive gameweeks. There’s no doubt about it, this is a Brighton team on the up. They’re much more competitive, more cohesive, tactically aware, and more defensive sound, but still its finding the back of the net regularly that so eludes them.

However, their impressive 3-2 win over a struggling and faltering Everton team may well be the game Brighton start to be more clinical, and we are really hoping so, because this is a team that can go places.

Picture this though, the Everton result was the first time this season Brighton have score three or more in a game. It’s a surprising stat considering the wealth of talent both in midfield and attack at Graham Potter’s disposal.

Neal Maupay, Leandro Trossard, Yves Bissouma, Enock Mwepu, Adam Lallana, Tariq Lamptey, Marc Cucurella, Jakub Moder, Graham Potter is building and moulding an exciting and tantalizing squad. While Neal Maupay (7) and Leandro Trossard (4) have shared the goals between them rather staggered this season, there is one flawless talent not named above who after his performance against Everton deserves his own seperate mention is Brighton’s Argentine midfield maestro Alexis Mac Allister.

Brighton and Hove Albion have needed a goalscoring midfielder ever since their promotion to the big league in 2017. Now, they have finally found one in the shape of the so-called South Coast Messi, as big a claim as that may be, Mac Allister is indeed a special footballer.

The 23-year-old’s two goals against Everton on Sunday highlighted his stunning ability in the final third, but also showed he has a fair amount in common with the former Barcelona great and his compatriot. Same shirt number, same build and stature but also the same aura when performing for their clubs respectively.

Mac Allister hasn’t had all his own way since his arrival.

He’s made the same number of top-flight substitute appearances (22) as starts (22) since an £8 million move from Argentinos Juniors in the January 2019 transfer window.

Mac Allister was loaned back to Argentinos, then to his boyhood idols Boca Juniors, before making his Brighton debut at Wolves in March 2020, the final fixture before COVID-19 led to a Premier League lockdown. The 23-year-old has been unfortunate that his period at the club has coincided with injuries, niggles and the disruptive pandemic but after a few false starts in the team, it finally looks like his big break amongst Potter’s first XI is finally upon him.

His double against Everton took his tally for the league season to four goals taking him level with Leandro Trossard, compared to scoring just once in 30 outings across the previous two campaigns. Graham Potter has turned to him in the last three matches in succession. They have yielded a 2-0 home win over Brentford, a 1-1 draw at Chelsea and a first-ever victory at Goodison Park.

Within those three appearances, Mac Allister has shown why he can be so pivotal to Potter’s impressively built side. Both of his goals were simply mesmerizing, applying the finish to fluid build-ups, something Brighton have struggled with for a while.

His first, ghosting into the box to volley Neal Maupay’s header from Joel Veltman’s cross past Jordan Pickford from six yards just two minutes and 43 seconds into the contest, Brighton’s fastest ever away goal in the Premier League. If you analyse the goal, you’d see as soon Veltman hit the cross towards the box, Mac Allister is already on the move to capitalize on any loose balls, and that’s how he was able to score, something out of Frank Lampard or even Lionel Messi’s playbook.

His second and Brighton’s third was out of the top draw, arrowing an unstoppable right-footed drive beyond the reach of England No 1 Jordan Pickford into the roof of the net from 20-yards, an absolute peach of a hit. Measured, purposeful and hit with real venom encompassing the fact that this is a footballer playing with real confidence.

It was his cross which led to Brighton’s third, but also it was a true measure of his specialty from free-kicks and corners. This is a player mastered in the art of creativity.

He currently averages 3.43 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes in the Premier League this season, the third most in the Brighton squad, again highlighting his creative abilities in the final third. Also, the Argentine averages 1.56 key passes, 4.38 passes into the final third and 4.53 progressive passes.

Lining up behind both Neal Maupay and Leandro Trossard, Mac Allister has fully utilised and taken advantage of the freedom offered to him in Brighton’s attacking play.

Mac Allister’s season heatmap

Whether its operating in the half-spaces or in the flanks orchestrating one and two touch football, he’s become so central to Potter’s intricate patterns of football. His heatmap above may not show as much action, but its safe to say Mac Allister is a smooth and silent operator, one who picks his moments but is obviously decisive when provided the opportunity. Not only is he thriving in his attacking play, but he’s a very valuable component in Graham Potter’s renewed pressing game this season.

The Argentinian averages 9.38 successful pressures per90 in the Premier League this season, the ninth best out of any player in the English top-flight, as well as averaging 2.66 tackles won per 90, which makes for telling reading when analysing his work off the ball. Mac Allister, Trossard and Maupay may look the smallest and not the strongest when defending from the front but they are true hustlers and harriers when trying to counter-press, something Graham Potter has utilised to good effect so far this campaign.

Against Everton, Mac Allister was at his sparkling best, recording 65 touches, the joint-second best in the Brighton team, 2 key passes, 3 shots, 3 accurate crosses, 2 accurate long balls, 5 tackles, and four clearances picking up a WhoScored rating of 8.76. Blessed with such amazing quick and silky feet, wonderful vision, and a technical set of skills that means he is like no other in this Brighton squad, a unique player who Graham Potter probably cannot do without.

Mac Allister only turned 23 on Christmas Eve, so there’s still a lot more to come from him. Five goals – 4 of them coming this campaign – is a credible return from 44 Premier League appearances overall for Brighton, considering so many of them have been limited roles from the bench. Of course, he will never reach Messi’s prestigious feats but Mac Allister is capable of the spectacular, whether chipping in with goals and assists that have been lacking from the midfield areas for Brighton.

Graham Potter said post-match:

“He’s got the quality. You can see that. He can contribute to the scoring phase for us, for sure. So can Enock, so can Jakub (Moder).

“That’s something we’re trying to improve because it’s too easy to blame the strikers if we don’t score. It was positive because we got goals from midfield and a goal from a set play, which is good for us.”

It’s high-time Brighton started getting goals from midfield and if they can keep Mac Allister fit and firing for the rest of the campaign, there is simply no reason why Graham Potter’s men can’t claim an unprecedented top-half finish in the Premier League table come May.

Certainly, Brighton’s Argentine midfield maestro will be central to those lofty ambitions, the future is looking really bright at the Amex Stadium.

FC Barcelona – Match Report vs Sevilla (21-12-2021)

FC Barcelona – Match Report vs Sevilla (21-12-2021)

A very much depleted but excitingly youthful exuberant Barcelona continued their steady progress under new boss Xavi as they took on Sevilla on Matchday eighteen of the Spanish La Liga, a game which finished 1-1. The Catalan giants lined up in their customary 4-3-3 setup with Xavi favouring a more aggressive, direct and combative approach to their setup in recent seasons. Despite the experience in the Sevilla XI, Xavi’s wonderkids impressively matched a resurgent Sevilla side both with and without the ball.

Barcelona recorded 23 shots (7 shots on target) in comparison to Sevilla’s 5 (one shot on target) highlighting their superiority for the majority of the game despite missing a number of key individuals.

Ratings:

  • A1 – Very good, could play higher
  • A2 – Strong potential to play higher
  • B1 – Good, strong player at level
  • B2 – Potential to be strong player at level
  • C – Average for the level, re-watch
  • D – Below average in this match

Gavi

Player profile:

  • Nationality: Spanish
  • Age: 17
  • Date of birth: 05/08/2004
  • Current club: FC Barcelona
  • Career: FC Barcelona
  • Position: Central-Midfielder
  • Preferred foot: Right

There really is no ends to the talents abilities of Barcelona’s prestigious and flawless young midfielder Gavi. The 17-year-old has made the most of all the opportunities he has been given so far this season at Barcelona, and he has gradually become a world-class prodigy.

Just days after scoring a terrific solo goal, recording an impressive assist and putting in yet another show-stopping performance in the 3-2 win over Elche on matchday seventeen, Gavi yet again showed why he is one of Europe’s most decorated young midfield talents battling it out with the likes of Sevilla’s Joan Jordán and Ivan Rakitic and never looking out of place. Lining up alongside Sergio Busquets and Frenkie de Jong within Barcelona’s midfield trident, Gavi continued his stark progression under the tutelage of Xavi.

Despite scoring a rating of 6.89 according to WhoScored, the Spaniard was so efficient in his pressing, harrying and tackling showcasing his impressive combative abilities, whilst also becoming so effective and influential when in possession of the ball. The 17-year-old was central to Barcelona’s attacking play, and the main source of Xavi’s men overpowering Sevilla in the midfield areas.

The La Masia wonderkid recorded 48 touches of the ball with a passing accuracy of just 68%, the lowest amongst Barcelona players who started the game, though its an indication as to the risk-free nature and freedom Xavi has offered him. He recorded 4 dribbles, 2 shots, 2 tackles, an interception and conceded two fouls. Gavi even should have been on the scoresheet had he headed in Abde’s fine cross in the closing minutes of the game, but instead misjudged the flight of the ball and headed wide.

Gavi looked so assured on the ball, and its why he has played the most passes into the final third than any other teenager in Europe’s top five leagues so far this season, a damning statistic considering this is only his first season tasting first team football.

Rating – A2

Abde Ezzalzouli

Player profile:

  • Nationality: Moroccan
  • Age: 20
  • Date of birth: 17/12/2001
  • Current club: FC Barcelona
  • Career: Hércules CF, FC Barcelona
  • Position: Winger
  • Preferred foot: Right

Another young talent Xavi is placing tremendous faith in is Moroccan winger Abde Ezzalzouli, and is repaying it handsomely with his raw abilities and unpredictability that is providing Barcelona with the spark they so desperately need in attack.

Lining up on the left-flank against Sevilla, with Ousmane Dembele lining up on the right, Abde yet again produced an influential display in attack for Barcelona. An element of Xavi’s preferred style of play is his strong use of wingers staying high and wide in order to stretch and widen the pitch as much as possible. It’s vital to remember that Xavi introduced Abde into his setup because of Barcelona’s lack of wide-forwards in the squad, but the young winger has answered all those issues with such consummate grace.

The Moroccan is a real threat when he is on song, as Sevilla found out on Tuesday night. Whenever the 20-year-old picked up possession, he always looked to get past his man. He produced a superb skill against Lucas Ocampos in the second-half that truly highlighted his unpredictability, pace, and raw dribbling skills.

Like Gavi, the forward was flawless without the ball pushing and pressing high whenever Sevilla tried to build from the back. Abde was rewarded with a WhoScored rating of 7.47, and rightly so. Everything good about Barcelona came through the Moroccan. Abde successfully completed 2 dribbles, 2 key passes, recorded 56 touches, produced seven total tackles, conceding four fouls and was even booked for his over-exuberance in the second-half.

However, Xavi will have again been pleased with Abde’s performance, whenever he needed to drop back and defend the space in front of Jordi Alba, he did, diffusing the threat of Lucas Ocampos but also pinning back Jules Kounde who filled in at right-back.

Rating – A1

The Moroccan could have ended the game with a goal and assist on another day, but can once again be proud of the impressive progress he is making in his maiden season as a Barcelona first team player.

Ronald Araújo

Player profile:

  • Nationality: Uruguayan
  • Age: 22
  • Date of birth: 07/03/1999
  • Current club: FC Barcelona
  • Career: Rentistas, Boston River, FC Barcelona
  • Position: Centre-Back, Right-Back
  • Preferred foot: Right

Ronald Araújo is fast becoming a one of Xavi’s most reliable and improved players under his stewardship, and so it proved against Sevilla, scoring the all-important equaliser. Traditionally a centre-back, but lining up in Seville at right-back once again, Araújo was solid and assured in defence.

Agile, swift, powerful, combative and a defender with such growing character and leadership in the Barca back-line, the 22-year-old has arguably been Barcelona’s player of the season so far. The Uruguayan’s reading of the game against Sevilla was brilliant, stepping out and engaging his opponents but also providing width on the right-flank whenever Ousmane Dembele operated in the half-spaces.

Araujo’s attacking instincts have proven as effective as he is in defence, and so it proved through his towering header to give Barcelona the equaliser. Rising head and shoulders above Fernando in the penalty area to head home Dembele’s in-swinging corner. Despite not playing in his natural position at centre-back, Araujo has filled in well at right-back keeping both Sergino Dest and Segio Roberto on the sidelines. He was named man of the match against Sevilla, continuing his fine progression and maturity under Xavi.

Araújo will of course be disappointed with the way Sevilla opened the scoring as the Barcelona defence were easily caught out from a smart corner routine which Papu Gomez dispatched superbly, but the blame won’t be placed solely on his shoulders as he more than made up for it in his all-round game on the night.

Rating – A2

65 touches, 3 aerial duels won owing to his impressive presence and abilities in the air, 1 key pass, 45 attempted passes and 2 interceptions with a final rating of 7.90, Araújo is steadily becoming a key individual in Barcelona’s first XI.

Bernardo Silva: Manchester City’s Master Craftsman

Bernardo Silva: Manchester City’s Master Craftsman

Classy. Elegant. Unique. Intelligent. Unerring. Unplayable, you name it. There is simply not enough superlatives out there to describe the immeasurable class, craft and qualities of Manchester City’s Portuguese maestro Bernardo Silva.

After yet another stunning individual display against Aston Villa, his boss Pep Guardiola went that step further and called his midfield lieutenant “the best” after his sumptuous strike sunk a rejuvenated Villa at Villa Park on gameweek 14.

Sure, recent Ballon d’or winner and former student of Guardiola, Lionel Messi and arguably the Premier League’s most consistent performer currently in Mohammed Salah – who controversially finished seventh on the Ballon d’or list – will have plenty reservations about Guardiola’s comments on Silva, but the way the 27-year-old is playing right now, you’d be forgiven for being in agreement with Guardiola’s brave comments.

“He is the best,” Guardiola said. “He was the best two or three seasons ago. He was the best then too. He has a special ability to do whatever he wants with the ball. Against a good goalkeeper it was an incredible finish.

You have to go back to when we won with 98 points, review the videos, you will see the same player like this right now.“

Indeed, that 2018/19 season in which Manchester City raced to the league title with an astonishing record of 98 points was arguably Silva’s best year in a City shirt. The Portuguese magician recorded an impressive 7 goals and 7 assists in 36 appearances in which he was awarded with the club’s player of the year gong, and that was the year in which Guardiola also possessed the legendary David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne both fully fit and firing.

Now, it feels much different. With much more responsibility, expectation and more leadership Bernardo Silva is responding with such remarkable grace and efficiency, and that’s why Guardiola admitted not along ago that he is simply ‘undroppable’, he is always one of the first names on the team-sheet.

But, its a year City needs him now more than ever, with David Silva taking on pastures new in Sociedad and Kevin De Bruyne struggling to get off the injury table, the onus is on Bernardo Silva to drag City to that next level, and that he is doing to such consummate aplomb.

Against Villa, Silva was at his sparkling best, proving the decisive factor and capped off a brilliant display with a goal truly representing his phenomenal and unique qualities, rounding off a silky City counter-attack.

It was a counter which simply cut Aston Villa to shreds, and it all started from their own penalty area with Mahrez pressured by two Villa players still managing to thread a sneaky ball to Fernandinho who found Gabriel Jesus making a dart beyond Tyrone Mings towards the right wing, behind Targett, and playing the perfect ball: 40 yards, expertly into his countrymen’s path.

With one look up to screen his surroundings, the Brazilian striker perfectly lofted an outstanding weighted cross for Bernardo Silva who would have been forgiven in taking a touch and then striking the ball, but that’s not the confidence and sheer class he’s playing at, instead he took it first time. A quite simply mesmerising hit which Emiliano Martínez could do nothing about.

This is a footballer oozing such peerless quality, spellbinding skill and technique, a first touch to simply melt over and phenomenal dribbling that even Ballon d’or winner Lionel Messi would certainly hand over his prestigious award for.

Like the 2018/19 campaign, Bernardo Silva is simply at the top of his game right now, and there’s no reason why he can’t surpass his tally from that season. He’s so far recorded 8 G/A (7 goals, 1 assist) in the Premier League so far with still around four months of the season to go.

Image via Sky Sports

However, goal contributions stats simply does not do his performances any justice. If you want to read well into how good and crafty Bernardo Silva is performing, you need to dive much deeper and the stats shown above is only half the story. He’s first at City for goals scored (5), dribbles attempted (38), distances covered (148.2), and second for interceptions (7) and duels won (63), so not only is he thriving in the attacking phases of play but in his defensive actions and that’s both in his counter-pressing in the attacking third and also in the middle-third.

To put it simply, Bernardo Silva is the complete footballer putting in complete performances each and every single game for Manchester City this season. Remember, Kevin De Bruyne is still out injured – guess you forgot about him didn’t you – but really City don’t need him, because Bernardo Silva is currently pulling the Belgian’s strings in every sense of the word.

Per90 so far this season, the Portuguese magician averages 1.29 key passes, 3.15 final third passes, 1.53 passes into the penalty area and 2.82 progressive passes. Though, its in his dribbling and ball-carrying abilities that City gain so much from. For progressive carries in which he ranks in the 99th percentile of players in Europe’s top five leagues, he averages 10.01 carries per 90 (carries that moves the ball towards the opponents goal at least 5yrds, or carries into the penalty area).

The way Silva weaves past his opponents with such unerring technique, dazzling ball control and such swift deceptive movement is a wonderful sight to behold. The former Monaco man certainly isn’t the most pacey of players but the class at which he caresses the ball with such nimble footwork and awesome body movement means he really doesn’t need pace to his beat his marker.

He is amazing at working and weaving his way out of tight areas and spots showing that £100m man Jack Grealish really isn’t the best dribbler at the Etihad.

Silva has so far this season completed 2.10 dribbles per 90 with a success rate of 61.9% – astonishing. What’s all the more impressive of Silva’s game is his swiss-army knife versatility. Guardiola can play him anywhere in midfield or attack, and he’ll conjure up the decisive moments each game. Play him in a false-nine, left-wing, right-wing, a roaming no.8 and he’ll still perform to his utmost best.

Bernardo Silva’s season heatmap

The Portuguese never stops running, never gives in and its shown in the amount of distances he puts in and on the heatmap above. Again, according to the stats, he is indeed the league’s hardest worker.

via Sky Sports

He has the numbers to back that claim up. Among regular Premier League players this season, Silva has covered more ground per 90 minutes than anyone else in the competition. He is averaging almost 12 kilometres per game, a perfect picture of perpetual motion.

Another remarkable stat is that only City’s holding midfield player Rodri has won back possession of the ball for the champions more times than Silva has this season in both the middle and final third of the pitch.

A uniquely gifted footballer, so meticulous and methodical in the way he weaves about in various areas on the pitch, with purpose, panache and a tactical understanding that Guardiola deems “the best”. It’s why he is undroppable, even if City play twice in three days.

The goal at Villa is the perfect example of how vital he is to City, making sure he is in the right place at the right time to score the decisive goals, he bamboozled at Old Trafford against rivals Manchester United, got the decisive assist against Paris Saint-Germain at the Etihad in the UEFA Champions League where he completed 100% of his 47 passes. He wowed against Everton on the same turf, put in a phenomenal full-throttle display against Liverpool in the 2-2 draw at Anfield, against Brighton at the Amex and so on an so forth. There is simply no stopping this man.

It’s amazing to think last season could well have been his last in a Manchester City shirt, with the Portuguese star reportedly stating his displeasure at a lack of game time, but Guardiola has heeded his doubts, placed his faith in him again, especially in the absence of key man Kevin De Bruyne and Silva is repaying that faith. It’s a credit to him in laying aside his complaints and sticking to his guns because he may have a huge say in this season’s captivating three-horse race for the Premier League title.

Silva shown through once again as Manchester City ran out a comfortable 3-1 over Watford at Vicarage Road. The Portuguese was yet again the star of the show, whose two brilliantly taken goals on the day took him to seven in the Premier League for the season — equaling his best season total in a Manchester City shirt.

The Portugal international’s six goals in his last eight league games has been a better return than his previous 61 games for Guardiola, and while his goalscoring looks to be running a bit hot when compared with his xG, you only have to look at some of his finishing to find that he is indeed playing at arguably his best levels yet as a Manchester City player.

While the 27-year-old is clearly on a hot streak with 0.52 goals per 90 this season, it is intriguing to see that his underlying attacking numbers are actually back on the level he was at during the 2019-20 season.

While Manchester City reclaimed their league title from Liverpool last campaign, Silva saw a drop in his attacking output on a personal level. So far this season, he is superseding those numbers and is currently head and shoulders above everybody else in the team.

Certainly, City’s best piece of business last summer was convincing Bernardo Silva to remain at the Etihad, you’ve got to wonder what might have been had the likes of Real Madrid or Barcelona had the money to spend. Silva would have surely been an asset to any of the Spanish giants.

For now though, he remains City’s master craftsman, their chief creating officer. Doesn’t Pep Guardiola know it?

Vinicius Jr the Young Star Real Madrid Can Now Rely On

Vinicius Jr the Young Star Real Madrid Can Now Rely On

It was exactly over a year ago – at half-time in Real Madrid’s UEFA Champions League group-stage tie against German outfit Borussia Mochengladbach – that Karim Benzema complained to teammate and French counterpart Ferland Mendy and instructed him not to pass to Brazilian Vinicius Jr as a result of the youngster’s greed and immaturity in the final third.

As ruthless and as rude as it was for Benzema to behave in such a way, the incident reflected the difficulties and struggles Vinicius Jr endured at this period in his Real Madrid career.

Certainly, he’s young, showing levels of immaturity at such a level, over-exuberant at times but it was expected especially in the context of where he came from, the branch offices of Flamengo, in the neighborhood of Mutuá, in São Gonçalo.

An area where he was taught to showboat, to express himself and to become the best trickster no matter if it came at the cost of his own team.

When Vinícius Júnior joined Real Madrid, he had it all. Well, almost. His all-round game was exciting. Dribbling second to none. Pace better than any of his opponents. Skill-set unmatched. No-one could keep up with him.

That’s who we was, a flamboyant footballer who always tried the audacious tricks, shots and pieces of skill not knowing how it could affect his teammates around him, and you’d be sure a player as experienced and decorated as Benzema is, he’d understand the nature of such a footballer seeing as he grew up in similar circumstances in France.

But when you’re as celebrated and successful as Benzema is, you expect the players around you to be hold similar mindsets and a winning mentality and it was evidently clear Vinicius Jr didn’t, which was no fault of his own.

It’s as if every time the Brazilian got to the final third, he’d slip up, either by shooting wayward when a pass to a fellow teammate would have sufficed or his over-exuberance getting the better of him attempting one or two tricks too many.

It was a recurring theme in Vinicius’ game, proving a tough cycle for him to grow out of.

But, things are much different now, fast forward a year and a month or so, you’d be delighted at the growth and maturity that the former Flamengo wing-wizard is currently performing at.

Under new coach Carlo Ancelotti, the change in his game has been magnificent, spellbinding, fearless, you name it. Vinicius Jr is a different animal and Karim Benzema now cannot get enough of him.

With ten goals and five assists in 17 appearances in all competitions, Vinicius has already surpassed his best goals and assists tally in just 17 games, only a third of the number of appearances he made in the 2020/21 season with Zinedine Zidane.

(Photo by Quality Sport Images/Getty Images)

In truth, the turnaround and maturity in his decision-making and all-round game has been nothing short of phenomenal. In 2020/21, he underperformed xG by a remarkable 3.82. For context, that’s twice as bad as anyone else in the Real Madrid squad. In 2021/22, he’s overperforming by 2.04 xG, a figure more than twice as good as anyone else, excluding Karim Benzema.

Benzema-dependencia, as the Spanish media like to call Real Madrid’s reliance on Karim Benzema for goals, well that phrase has been thrown out the window as a result of Vinicius Jr’s sudden purple patch. Now, Karim Benzema who didn’t approve of the Brazilian over a year ago, simply cannot perform without him.

While its a testament and credit to the 21-year-old, the credit must also be given to Carlo Ancelotti who has totally unleashed the Brazilian with undying belief and faith in his abilities.

This is what the Real Madrid faithful had been waiting for all along, even more so, president Florentino Perez who initially desired Neymar to fulfil his galactico-type gratification but instead had to make do with Vinicius Jr.

Vinícius scored five in La Liga’s opening five games. By matchday six, he’d already been involved in eight goals and was stepping up as one of LaLiga’s most influential players, while also racking up six goal involvements in four Champions League appearances.

Injuries have played their part. Rodrygo Goes, Eden Hazard and Gareth Bale have all struggled with fitness, while Vinícius has shone on the field while staying fit. While all three have had long-term issues, Vini has only missed one game since May 2019, but his improvements have gone far beyond just keeping fit.

“I think Vinícius has a lot of quality in one-on-ones,” the Italian coach said after the 21-year-old single-handedly tore apart Alavés. “I’ve told him that to score goals he has to take one or two touches, it’s difficult to score with four or five touches. He’s a very young player, he’s going to improve.”

It’s become a common theme so far this season; the Brazilian wing-wizard tormenting defences and tearing apart opposition defenders with peerless pieces of skill, but all of that is down to the confidence rewarded to him from players like Benzema, but more importantly the extra training sessions and his ability to heed to the advice given to him by his coaches.

Vinicius is no longer that naïve, overconfident and inexperienced raw talent that arrived through the Real Madrid doors in 2018. He’s now more an assured, mature and decorated performer, still possessing bags of potential to become even greater and that spells such great news for Real Madrid, a healthy return on their risky investment.

Vinicius has shown this season whatever the situation, he can and will create – whether it be scoring or assisting, he is quickly becoming a central protagonist within Carlo Ancelotti’s side.

Since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, Real lacked a character that was the focal point, a player who constantly threatened the opposition, and a target for opposition supporters. For all the brilliance of Benzema, the Frenchman is in actual fact universally loved and respected for his more silent and respectful demeanor.

Many thought it’d be Eden Hazard when he arrived from Chelsea, but his move hasn’t quite worked out because of injuries and lack of fitness. Gareth Bale was supposed to be the chosen one after Ronaldo left, but fans haven’t still taken quite a liking to him.

Vinicius looks the perfect candidate, he thrives in the chaos he creates, he’s comfortable with the attention he is garnering. The Brazilian is willing to stand up and wave the flag for the club, whether it be at the Mestalla, Wanda Metropolitano or Camp Nou.

The Clàsico earlier this season proved the perfect example of the mentality monster Vinicius has become. In enemy territory, in the face of much abuse, booing and jeering, he proved all-throughout to be a thorn in Barcelona’s side.

The Brazilian destroyed Barca’s right-hand flank, so much so that former boss Ronald Koeman withdrew Oscar Mingueza at halftime as a result. He may not have registered a goal or an assist, but it was clear throughout his time on the pitch, Vinicius was at the centre of Real’s attacks – a constant outlet and his teammates thrived off it.

Against Granada over the weekend, Vinicius stepped up when Real needed him most. Los Blancos were seemingly unsettled by the hosts, struggling to create and break through their stubborn backline. After the half-time break, it was Vinicius who proved the decisive contributor once again.

He played a part in a move which he finished off, within ten minutes of that, he had forced Monchu to desperately lunge at him after the Brazilian left him in his wake. The Granada midfielder was correctly sent off as a result as Vinicius lay on the turf, a smile on his face winning the battle and making his contribution toward winning the war.

All of that came just seconds after the Brazilian completed mazy jinking run ghosting past a hatful of Granada defenders, and fouling him in such a manner is now the only way defenders can stop him, yet the Brazilian would always finish the game having the last laugh.

The Brazilian finished the Granada match with a goal, 61 touches, a key pass, five dribbles, 3 shots on target with a WhoScored rating 8.58. Those stats only merely scratch the surface when analysing the kind of influence he is having on his teammates.

Amongst players in La Liga, Vinicius Jr ranks first for progressive distance carried per 90 (250.9), first for progressive carries (13.3), first for carries into the final third (3.67) and first for carries into the penalty area (3.94) highlighting his amazing dribbling efficiency but also incredible knack of taking on the responsibility in driving Real Madrid up the pitch.

He ranks second for goal-creating actions (9) and third for shot-creating actions (62) once again showing that he is being trusted with leading Real Madrid’s attacks and the growing responsibilities afforded to him.

This season, Vinícius is more incisive and clinical, no longer doubting, hesitating or waiting for that split second. While in both 2019/20 and 2020/21 he made an average of 1.2 shots per 90 minutes, the number has risen to 2.8 per 90 in 2021/22. Much of that is down purely to confidence and a greater sense of urgency in Real Madrid’s all-round play.

Vinicius Jr has certainly grown and matured into one of Europe’s most complete performers right now, and that is showing through his performances but also more importantly his goal returns have taken a huge boost and that’s a credit to him recognizing the areas in which to improve on in the final third, and its now reaping its just rewards.

The question is now, can he translate this sort of form on a consistent basis for years to come or will it drown out like so many of other young talents before him? That’s for him to decide, but the ball is totally in his flawlessly talented court.

Those previous doubts surrounding Vinicius’ naivety and recklessness in the attacking areas are fading away. There can be little doubt over his raw talent. His passion and abilities is almost trademark Brazilian, and his drive is unrivalled in the modern game. His technical ability is magnificent, and he now appears to have the finishing skills to match. He’s proven that he’s more than a young winger with flair, he’s a man who can make a difference and win a game on his own.

Real Madrid have always possessed a talent capable of taking games by the scruff of the neck, and Vinicius Jr is now the latest in a very long line of decorated and pure footballing talents. Long may his stunning form continue.

Emile Smith-Rowe: The come of age baller with the Midas touch

Emile Smith-Rowe: The come of age baller with the Midas touch

Finally, we are seeing Emile Smith-Rowe given the opportunity his tremendous and unique abilities demanded, and he, his club and manager are duly reaping the rewards.

Mikel Arteta has got be given credit for providing him the platform, moulding and fine-tuning the youngster’s game, allowing him the freedom and room to express himself.

Smith-Rowe’s game over during the calendar year has massively improved, not only in his goal output – which we’ll come too soon – but his intelligence and understanding of where to be, where to operate effectively within the final third as Arsenal’s main source of creativity has come on leaps and bounds.

ESR is now almost the complete attacking midfield package, with more maturing and refining to come which in actual fact is quite frightening.

If you can remember during last summer when many were calling for Mikel Arteta to recruit an elite-level number-10, one who can provide Arsenal with the invention and imagination in the final third.

They went on and bought Martin Ødegaard permanently after his successful loan spell at the Emirates last season, with Emile Smith-Rowe was attracting much interest elsewhere as Aston Villa placed a £25million pound bid for his services.

You’ve got to wonder what might have been had Arsenal decided to sell the youngster, but they dared not to, and Smith-Rowe is showing the Arsenal fanbase that he is indeed the man to drive Arteta’s ever-improving squad to the next level. The 21-year-old has been so good that Ødegaard can barely get an opportunity in the Arsenal XI.

10 games unbeaten in all competitions now for Arsenal after their recent Premier League win over Watford before the November international break, and it was ESR’s moment of brilliance – albeit controversially – that broke the deadlock and rewarded them their third win a row, and third win in their last 5 games in the top-flight.

This sumptuous and uniquely gifted performer has arguably been the mastermind behind Arsenal’s recent renaissance. With his sweeping finish against Watford at the Emirates Stadium, ESR bagged his fifth goal in eight appearances, matching and beating his total for the whole of last season, just only couple months into the current campaign.

It was only right Gareth Southgate called him up to the England squad as a result, despite only getting in because of injuries to Marcus Rashford, Mason Mount and James Ward-Prowse. However, Smith-Rowe’s form has been damn-near impossible to ignore. This is a player on top of his game and his goal contributions so far this campaign only tell half the story.

The academy graduate was challenged to contribute more goals by Mikel Arteta during his breakthrough campaign, a season where he hardly got a look in because of Martin Ødegaard’s increasing influence in Arsenal’s attack. But now, a few months on and Arsenal are a much better unit, a more free-flowing and exciting attacking side with Smith-Rowe at the heart of it, and that is a testament to the 21 year-old’s stunning development in such a short space of time.

Four goals and two assists in the Premier League so far, giving him the highest combined G+A total amongst the Arsenal camp so far this season, a tremendous stat for him to chew on. Smith-Rowe has been instrumental, embracing the responsibility of taking on the coveted no.10 shirt after signing a new contract in July.

Together with Bukayo Saka, Kieran Tierney, new impressive recruits Ben White and Aaron Ramsdale, he has come to symbolize and represent this exciting and progressive chapter that Mikel Arteta is overseeing at the Emirates.

Smith-Rowe’s development which has accelerated this term is a result of all his hard work, application, maturity and meticulous attention to detail when working on his own game behind the scenes.

The regularly acclaimed “Croydon De Bruyne” has superbly grown into one of the most accomplished attacking midfielders in the Premier League.

Against Watford, the 21-year-old recorded 43 touches, finished with a pass success rate of 96%, delivered six crosses, made three ball recoveries, and registered two shots. His goal also meant that he is now one of four Arsenal players to have scored in three straight PL games before their 22nd birthday, after former players Nicolas Anelka, Jose Antonio Reyes and Cesc Fabregas – not a bad list to be amongst.

Towards the end of last season, Emile Smith-Rowe sat down with management and the people close to him to see how he can further enhance his game in the final third. It was highlighted that others in his position, such as Jack Grealish, Mason Mount and Bruno Fernandes, typically average between two to three shots per 90 minutes.

Smith-Rowe, by contrast, was only recording 0.8 shots per 90. However, there has been an intentional and concerted effort to change those numbers. He has heavily focused on his ability to get into the opposition box more, attempting to develop a better understanding of when to shoot rather than pass, and that was highlighted in his goal against Watford.

His improvement in those areas has been nothing short excellent. In 11 appearances so far in the Premier League, ESR has already taken more shots than he did in 20 outings last season. Crucially, they have come from much better positions, giving a greater chance of finding the back of the net. That is not down to luck, its down to Smith-Rowe’s willingness to learn, to improve and his determination to execute his attempts.

With the help of Arteta and his staff, Smith-Rowe has improved the timing of his runs and developed a knack of ghosting into the opposition box untracked by defenders.

Those unique qualities are highlighted in his recent goals against Leicester City, Tottenham Hotspur and AFC Wimbledon in the Carabao Cup, all of which were dispatched fist time from the centre of the 18-yard-box as seen in the image above. Much of this, is a result of the increasing freedom and room to express himself that has been handed to Smith-Rowe, and he is repaying that faith with fantastic aplomb.

Last season, he averaged 0.12 goals, 0.81 shots, 0.37 shots on target, 2.86 touches in the opposition box and 0.62 dribbles per 90 minutes.

This season those numbers have dramatically increased, he’s averaging 0.33 goals, 1.5 shots, 1.0 shots on target, 3.13 touches in the opposition box and 1.8 dribbles per 90 minutes. ESR is more well-rounded in his approach, much more meticulous and composed as well as becoming so devastatingly effective, seasoned creators like Bruno Fernandes and Kevin De Bruyne would be mightily impressed.

Also, his influence around the final third is shining through also, and hopefully providing he stays fit and healthy for much of this campaign, these numbers will only increase even further. Per 90 minutes, he is averaging 1.41 key passes, 1.92 final third passes and 1.41 passes into the opposition box. To cap it off, Smith-Rowe averages 2.73 shot-creating actions per 90 minutes, already an improvement of his 2.69 average for the whole of last campaign.

If that doesn’t highlight his improvement in the final third, then what will?

The youngster may be seeing less of the ball this season, his touches per 90 dropping from 57.9 last season to 49.2 in the new campaign, but he is certainly doing more with it. There is an increased emphasis on his effectiveness on games. Where once he was more inclined to simply pass the ball to a teammate, now he’s more brave and courageous in carrying the ball forward and driving his team up the pitch.

Seriously, it is a phenomenal sight to behold.

Smith-Rowe’s dribbling numbers have rapidly increased even more than his shots on goal. He is averaging 2.1 successful take-ons per90 minutes which is nearly four times higher than it was last season and puts him at a similar level to dribble-kings Grealish, Mohamed Salah and Raheem Sterling. He records the 7th best progressive carries per 90 (7.27) and is also improving on his carries into the final third with an average of 3.33 compared to 1.81 last season.

It’s these sort of numbers that show Emile Smith-Rowe is getting better as a footballer and performer. Every time he gets the ball in those dangerous areas, Arsenal fans immediately rise up to their feet. The Emirates’ new number 10 is a showstopper, arguably the main event of an impressively growing unit under Arteta.

What’s scary is, ESR can only get better which means Arsenal will only get better and that spells good news for the Gunners faithful despite their struggles in the first few weeks of the season. The 21-year-old is influential in every phase of his game, even in his defending. He averages 3.84 successful pressures per90, meaning he is contributing to Arsenal’s pressing game with such efficient and effective energy. He doesn’t shy away from the doing the dirty work from the front, 1.62 tackles + interceptions to show for his efforts.

Smith-Rowe’s recent progress is down to a number of factors but he has certainly benefitted from an uninterrupted pre-season – a luxury he did not have in preparation for the previous two campaigns. He’s always been dedicated in terms of his approach and application but in recent months he has reaped the rewards of paying closer attention to his nutrition in order to become the complete athlete.

You can see that in his performances on the pitch, his concentration, his energy, game-intelligence and influence when Arsenal need him most. It’s no wonder why he’s received such stark praise from his manager and pundits alike. Smith-Rowe is certainly amongst the most promising young performers in the country and these past few months have proved just that.

He is indeed the come-of-age young baller with the Midas touch.

The Outstanding Progression of Declan Rice

The Outstanding Progression of Declan Rice

West Ham United continued their impressive upward trajectory under David Moyes with a superb performance against Aston Villa at Villa Park, powering to a 4-1 win.

It was a triumph which meant they finished gameweek 10 in fourth spot, three points away from fifth-placed Manchester United, but also it was their fourth league win in 5 games and continuing their unbeaten away form so far this season.

There is plenty of excitement and optimism at the London Stadium, as David Moyes is in the process of moulding and shaping such a well-rounded, organised, fine-balanced and progressive footballing unit.

From 1st choice goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski right down to lone-hitman Michail Antonio, the former Everton and Manchester United boss is assembling a team seriously capable of laying down a major assault on an unprecedented top-four sport come May, and you certainly wouldn’t put it past them.

Who knows? Maybe, just maybe the Hammers could well end this campaign with their first real competitive trophy since their FA Cup triumph in 1980. The club are still involved in all their cup competitions so far after beating EFL Cup holders Manchester City to make it to the last eight.

Much of West Ham’s fine progression has not only been down to their togetherness, spirited and organised nature on the football pitch, but its a team filled with unlikely individuals playing at the top of their games, like academy product Ben Johnson – grabbing his first professional goal against Villa – Jarrod Bowen, Pablo Fornals, Angelo Ogbonna, Aaron Cresswell, Tomas Soucek, Said Benrahma and the colossal Michail Antonio up front.

But one man who just simply gets better with every passing game, continuing his stellar progression under David Moyes’ tutelage is club captain and one of England and Gareth Southgate’s trusted lieutenants Declan Rice.

The 22-year-old has been in sensational form over the last couple of campaigns but has taken his game to another level in the opening weeks of the 2021/22 campaign, with pundit and TV host Gary Lineker labelling his latest performance against Aston Villa “magnificent”.

Rice has been central to West Ham’s impressive start to the campaign, putting in some superb performances from midfield alongside Tomas Soucek.

“I don’t think he’s been consistent enough. He doesn’t stay with runners. He’s sloppy in possession… I can go on.” This was the grueling assessment from Roy Keane on Rice in November 2019. But two years on, the Irishman has been forced to eat his previous words and completely alter his assessment of the midfielder: “He’s 22 and I look at where I was when I was 22, and he’s way ahead of me.”

Rightly so, Declan Rice has developed into one of Europe’s most prestigious young midfielders in the space of about a year, or even inside this calendar year. The Hammers academy product has dramatically improved all aspects of his play, in his defensive work but most significantly in his distribution and ball-progression.

Rice has been the catalyst for much of West Ham’s efficient and devastating counter-attacking goals so far this campaign, and earned the treat of contributing to two of West Ham’s four goals against Aston Villa, setting up Ben Johnson for the opener and taking advantage of Emiliano Martinez’ poor positioning with a 25-yard piledriver into the bottom corner – a true reflection of the kind of confidence and elegant aura that the 22-year-old is currently performing from.

In actual fact, it’s difficult to pin-down Declan Rice’s best role, and that’s testament to the varied quality of the midfielder.

In previous campaigns, the midfielder has been defined as a deep-lying defensive midfielder, tasked in shielding his back-four, disrupting opposition attacking moves while recycling possession to his more forward-thinking teammates.

However, Rice’s game has transcended much beyond that, he is a hybrid midfielder fulfilling a number of roles and duties within the Hammers midfield, its no wonder Chelsea and Manchester United are reportedly stepping up their interest in the so-called “£100m man”.

This season, Rice has maintained and excelled in his defensive anchoring duties. He’s averaged 2.9 interceptions per 90 minutes so far this campaign, the most of any midfielder in the Premier League. Also, the 22-year-old has won on average 1.60 tackles per 90 minutes, 2.00 blocks, 1.10 clearances and completed 4.30 successful pressures.

Although Rice’s defensive work has been correctly lauded prior to this season, it’s something that he has improved upon further since the summer, and his first major international tournament for his country has proven a pivotal experience in his outstanding development.

Though one aspect in which Rice is totally excelling is his distribution of the ball, and he recognises it himself: “This season, one thing I can definitely say I have improved on is my play with the ball.” This is why it is now hard to pin down the English international’s best role – a box-to-box, or deep-lying playmaker? And that’s not a bad thing, in fact its a celebration of how far the midfielder has come under David Moyes.

Rather than simply a defensive midfield anchor, Rice has transformed his passing ability of late. He’s completed 608 passes – the 3rd most of any midfielder in the Premier League behind Manchester City’s Rodri (632) and Liverpool’s Jordan Henderson (635). Also, his contributions to West Ham’s possession play in dissecting defences is simply brilliant too.

He averages 1.20 key passes per 90, 6.80 final-third passes – the third most of any midfielder in the competition also – and 4.20 progressive passes (completed passes which moves the ball towards the opponent’s goal at least 10 yards from its furthest point).

Even more impressively, this has been achieved with a 91% passing accuracy, a figure 5% higher than last season. The West Ham vice-captain has for a long time been considered someone that plays the easy pass. However, the stats clearly show that has not been the case this season.

He also has the 2nd highest figure of Premier League midfielders for total progressive distance of passes. Compared to last season, Rice is making 1.5 more progressive passes per 90. So whilst Rice’s passing accuracy has improved from last season, he is actually making far more progressive, risky passes, making his improved passing accuracy all the more impressive.

(Photo by Justin Setterfield/Getty Images)

Furthermore, his dribbling of the ball, progressing his side up the pitch or evading opponent’s pressure has also represented a stand-out feature of his game. As shown in the image above, according to OptaJoe, only Bernardo Silva has amassed more progressive carries (110) than Rice’s 106 which makes for yet another pleasing reading for the English international.

Per 90, that reads at 7.40 progressive carries, whilst also averaging 3.20 progressive carries into the attacking areas of the pitch. Rice is a driving force, a true metronomic figure on the ball for West Ham whilst also becoming a dominant, sturdy and tough-tackling figure when defending his own goal.

Most notably, Rice’s ability to carry the ball up the pitch can be seen in his remarkable solo goal against Dinamo Zagreb in the UEFA Europa League. After intercepting the ball inside his own half, he shrugs off a challenge before marauding into the Zagreb box and firing past Livakovic. Rice’s headed goal against Rapid Wien signalled the Englishman’s newfound intent to break the lines and get into the box.

Compared to last campaign, Rice is managing more touches all over the pitch highlighting his ever-increasing contributions to West Ham’s play. He’s so far recorded three goals and three assists so far in all competitions. Defensive midfielder? Surely not.

Clearly, he is now more intent and confident in joining the attack while Soucek screens behind him, and vice-versa. It is why both Soucek and Rice have become arguably the Premier League’s most effective and cohesive midfield pivot, and that is a testament to the squad David Moyes is assembling at the London Stadium.

After all, he did a brilliant job of anchoring the England midfield during the recent European Championships in June/July. However, so far this season Rice has elevated his game once again. Not only has he built upon his screening work in front of the defence, but also his ball progression and contributions to West Ham’s attacking play.

Whether it’s his powerful, driving runs or his crisp passing through the lines, Rice has developed his play on the ball considerably. West Ham now have a unique talent – a hybrid player and arguably one of the most complete midfielders in European football right now.

What a player.

Michael Olise makes Premier League mark with brilliant cameo against Leicester City

Michael Olise makes Premier League mark with brilliant cameo against Leicester City

It was inside 50 minutes, Crystal Palace were 2-0 down against Leicester City – down but probably not out – Patrick Vieira’s men pressing and harrying their opponents but without any real incision or cutting edge in the final third. It had been the story of their season so far, conjuring up fine openings but lacking the ruthlessness when it mattered most.

Vieira knew that, and felt it was the perfect time for a change, for a fresh new impetus, and a significant one it turned out to be.

On came new summer signing and exciting young midfielder Michael Olise in place of the misfiring Jordan Ayew.

As soon as the 19-year-old wonderkid took his position on the pitch, Palace instantly stepped it up a notch and the former Reading man was at the centre of it alongside fellow substitute and goalscorer Jeffrey Schlupp, Odsonne Edouard and Wilfried Zaha.

Every time Olise took possession, he attempted to make things happen, expressing his bravery and courage on the ball, taking on Premier League experienced full-back Ryan Bertrand at every opportunity.

There was a moment soon after Olise came on, picking up the ball with his back to goal, swiveling on the half-turn past his marker before slotting a finely threaded through ball for full-back Joel Ward to rush onto.

It was only a small exhibition, but a true sign of what Michael Olise brings to Palace’s midfield. Not many players in Vieira’s weaponry possess the ability to unlock defences at such an alarming rate as Olise.

This is a uniquely and technically gifted midfielder, a delight to watch with the ball at his feet.

If you saw Olise during his Championship days, you’d know he holds a wand of a left-foot possessing the abilities not just to thread deft incisive through balls, but to cross effectively, make the most of set-piece opportunities and also the unique ability to get by a defender with the swiftness of feet and the most deceptive of movements on the ball.

The midfielder recorded an impressive 7 goals and 12 assists in the Sky Bet Championship last season making him one of the division’s most consummate, effective and influential attacking midfielders.

Under Paunovic at the Madejski stadium, Olise fulfilled a variety of roles in attack; on the left-wing, right-wing, centre-midfield and at no.10 highlighting his incredible versatility, tremendous tactical knowledge and awareness but also the superb knack of becoming an influential cog no matter where he is on the field.

Olise was used in Jordan Ayew’s position when he came on, and immediately changed the whole trajectory for Crystal Palace,. The midfielder got his just rewards scoring a scorching effort inside the box past Kasper Schmeichel just eight minutes after stepping on to the pitch.

It’s fair to say Olise has taken in his new surroundings like a duck to water, and his 30-odd minute cameo against Leicester City will have surely captured the imagination of the Palace faithful. They now know they’ve got a real talent on their hands, and that was made perfectly clear when they jeering on his name soon after scoring.

Within those 30-odd minutes, Olise recorded 28 touches of the ball, 2 key passes, 2 long balls, 2 crosses and won 2 of his aerial duels as well as three shots according to WhoScored.com. His pass percentage read at 82.4% meaning he is not afraid to create something out of nothing. If cameos are anything to go by, Michael Olise’s was very impressive.

As much as its easy to get carried away by Olise’s short stint against Leicester City, Patrick Vieira has correctly warned that Olise is not at his best form yet, and that patience must indeed be handed to the youngster as he acclimatises himself to the Premier League, he said:

“We are all really excited by his talent, but at the same time we have to understand it will take time to be a Premier League player. He is working well and hard at a good club to support him to develop himself. It’s about him keeping working, he’s doing well in training, he can score goals, but we have to support him to develop himself.

“It is a long season, so he will definitely play some games. He’s had a long injury and is not at his best yet, but he is improving and will be a really important player for us.”

Michael Olise of course must be given much time to get used to the rigours of the Premier League, though all of his impressive cameos have come against the league’s big boys in Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and Leicester City. Yet another stark reminder that 19-year-old doesn’t under the weight of expectation, pressure or lofty responsibilities.

Olise’s future in a Crystal Palace looks very promising, and his performance against Leicester will have surely given Patrick Vieira something to think about heading into the international break; that he isn’t here to sit on the bench, he’s here to make his mark on the biggest stage in the country and boy, does he possess all the tools necessary to become one of the brightest young players this nation has seen.

Christopher Nkunku, RB Leipzig’s shining light

Christopher Nkunku, RB Leipzig’s shining light

If RB Leipzig can take any solace from their quite below-par start to the season under new boss Jesse Marsch, its the form of their supremely gifted talismanic French midfielder Christopher Nkunku.

The 23-year-old was terribly unlucky that is tremendous hat-trick against Manchester City in their UEFA Champions League group stage curtain raiser came at a disastrous cost as Leipzig were cut to shreds at the other end as City triumphed 6-3 at the Etihad.

While much of the headlines on the night will have been about their shambolic defending against Grealish and co. Christopher Nkunku’s stock rose considerably providing hope for Leipzig in an otherwise dour evening in Manchester.

Photo: REUTERS/Craig Brough

The 23-year-old took his goals superbly, despite all three of them drawing Leipzig back into the game whilst City ran riot, but all three goals were a true reflection of the remarkable growth he is showing under Jesse Marsch so far this season.

The former Red Bull Salzburg coach has already stated his admiration and joy at working with the Frenchman, “Christopher has no weaknesses. He’s young and still want a lot more. Working with him is a lot of fun as he’s really intelligent and has a lot of potential.”

Indeed, Nkunku is an incredibly intelligent player and that isn’t just reflected in his goals – he’s got 7 goals and 2 assists in eight games at the time of writing – it’s the way he’s setting about scoring them. Getting himself into the right positions to take his chances but also provide the whole team with the onus to go and express themselves in attack.

Against Hertha Berlin at the weekend, Nkunku scored two beautiful goals – a dink over the keeper and a finely taken free-kick right into the top corner – and provided two assists in Leipzig’s 6-0 rout over a very poor Hertha BSC side to become the hallmark of Leipzig’s instant rejuvenation.

In their second Champions League group stage game against Belgian outfit Club Brugge – in yet another European defeat for Jesse Marsch and his side – he bagged his fourth goal in the competition latching onto a through ball to put Leipzig ahead in a 2-1 defeat.

It’s important to note that Nkunku has always provided the admirable and telling consistency in his game that makes him such a uniquely gifted performer for Leipzig. It’s only now, his performances are reaping its rewards.

Last season, he registered the highest combined non-penalty expected goals (npxG) and expected assists (xA) for attacking midfielders/wingers domestically (0.73 per game). How does that rank amongst his peers? Very high in fact. Over the course of the past year, he ranks in the 96th percentile in Europe’s top five leagues and international club competition for the same category (0.64 per game).

NpxG and xA are combined with “shot creation actions”, meaning “the two offensive actions directly leading to a shot, such as passes, dribbles and drawing fouls”, highlighting involvement in Leipzig’s attacks. Once again, his overall contribution was only bettered by a handful of the world’s top midfielders/forwards, including Neymar and Lionel Messi.

However, due to poor finishing by himself and his teammates meant that his extraordinarily positive influence on the team’s attacking output was getting somewhat overlooked because he wasn’t registering the goals and assists that is expected from attacking midfielders.

His Bundesliga npxG of 0.37 and xA of 0.36 per 90 only produced six goals and six assists from 28 games. In fact, his underlying numbers suggest Nkunku should really have notched around 10 goals and 10 assists last season. His end product appeared above-average rather than excellent, unlike his debut campaign where he hit five goals and 13 assists.

Also, his positional versatility proved his undoing under former boss Julian Nagelsmann last year. He was seen as a very useful utility player rather than the technically gifted up-and-coming star he should have been perceived as.

Nkunku performed in a variety roles mostly as one of two narrow attacking midfielders behind a striker or false nine which hampered his understanding of his role and value in the team and also the opportunity to work efficiently and effectively with his fellow attackers such as the equally gifted Dani Olmo.

In Jesse Marsch’s 4-2-3-1 system, by contrast, he’s been utilised as more of a winger.

When Marsch changed his set-up in response to his team’s run of poor results ahead of the Hertha BSC game and reverted to Nagelsmann’s 3-4-3 system, Nkunku was back in the right-sided No 10 role but crucially given licence to make roam and make deeper runs as his abilities warrant.

From there, he’s able to provide his strongest assets: his pace, off-the-ball movement and superb understanding of space in between the opponent’s defence and midfield. Against Hertha, Nkunku clocked an outstanding 35.5 kilometres per hour during the game.

Defensively, Nkunku is just as quick off the mark and without the ball. 8.69 pressures in the final third put him in the 99th percentile in the top five leagues for players in his positions.

The midfielder is so dangerously creative too. Once he gets the ball in the final third, its incredibly hard to stop him expressing himself. He’s always on the move, always willing to receive the ball in the most difficult areas in the half-space but more important he is very competent and consistent in attempting the extraordinary eye-of-the-needle through balls. He’s averaged an incredible 5.27 shot creating actions, 2.41 key passes, 2.22 passes into the final third whilst also averaging the same amount of passes into the 18-yard-box per90 minutes. Again, he is so vital to Jesse Marsch’s team.

He is indeed a uniquely gifted performer.

Now, we are finally starting to see Nkunku reap his rewards. He’s always worked hard as the above stats show, he’s always been a willing player both in attack and defence but he hasn’t had the numbers to show for it.

At Leipzig, they’re not surprised at his extraordinary start to the season.

After returning from the summer break with more muscle having worked with a personal trainer on his stability and speed, putting in extra shifts on the training ground in his ball-work, Marsch and his coaching staff were expecting him to be one of the key performers in this campaign and Nkunku has repaid their faith so far.

He is one of the first names on the team-sheet this season, after finding his spot limited under Naglesmann last year.

Born in Lagny-sur-Marne, the same Paris suburb that produced Paul Pogba, Nkunku cut a rather slight if confident figure among fellow Clairefontaine academy students Marcus Thuram (now at Borussia Monchengladbach), Allan Saint-Maximin (now at Newcastle United) and Amine Harit (now at Marseille).

As was often the case of young stars playing in Paris, opportunities were limited for players from the PSG academy. If you need any examples, just ask players like Odsonne Edouard, Tanguy Nianzou, Boubakary Soumaré or Timothy Weah, the list is endless.

Nkunku understood that he needed to find regular game time hence his move to Leipzig in 2019. A club well placed to provide him with the development and learning his game deserved.

Shortly before leaving Paris, Arsenal head of recruitment Sven Mislintat had attempted to bring in the player on loan in the 2018-19 winter transfer window but PSG didn’t approve. He was sold to RB for €13 million and made it to the semi-finals of the Champions League in his first season.

“It was the club I needed,” Nkunku explained at the time. “I’ve rediscovered the pleasure of playing. I feel that I’m blossoming on the pitch, that I’m a bit more liberated. The more time goes on, the better I am. Now I can say that it is better to leave your comfort zone to grow taller.”

The 23-year-old has grown considerably since then, his game has matured and his intelligence and understanding of the tactically has soared through the roof, and its a testament to his hard-work and willingness to learn and improve. Nkunku is only going to get better and that’s a scary sight for Leipzig’s opponents this season.

His existing contract runs until 2024 but just like Dayot Upamecano, Ibrahima Konate, Naby Keita, Timo Werner and Marcel Sabitzer before him, he’ll almost certainly become too good a player to stick around at Leipzig for much longer.

The club will have to enjoy him while they can, because Christopher Nkunku is on to much bigger things in the near future.