Jérémy Doku Scout Report At Manchester City 2023/2024: How The Belgian Fits Into Pep’s Plans – Player Analysis

Jérémy Doku was one of Manchester City’s four major transfers in the summer of 2023, brought in as a long-term investment, similar to Joško Gvardiol.

While the 21-year-old has predominantly played as a right-winger, Pep Guardiola has different plans for him, seeing the potential of using him as an inverted winger due to his favoured right foot.

While he was brought in as a backup for Jack Grealish on the left, he can also successfully replace Phil Foden on the right as well.

The Belgian international arrival is essential for The Citizens, especially following the departures of Riyad Mahrez to Al-Ahli) and Cole Palmer to Chelsea.

In Doku’s face, the manager has a versatile player with distinguished technical skills and composure on the ball.

He was one of the best performers for his previous club, Rennes, despite not being a regular starter.

The first impressions at Etihad are pretty positive, with the youngster already scoring twice and assisting once in seven games. 

In our Jérémy Doku scout report in the form of tactical analysis, we explain Doku’s role at Manchester City and how he can impact their performance both in possession and out of possession.

Jérémy Doku Player Profile 

Guardiola tends to bring in players with a distinguished passing range and composure who can excel both individually and collectively, aligning with his tactical approach.

Manchester City’s possession-based style of play and quick ball movement require players with strong on and off-the-ball movement who can adapt to quick transitions and explosive attacking movement.

The winger position, of course, falls in the same category.

The strong spatial awareness and press resistance are a must for every player playing under the Spaniard as it allows the Citizens a smooth build-up play and versatility in the final third.

They are essential for the wingers, as they need to support ball progression both from out wide and centrally through progressive runs, passing, and shooting.

It also applies to their defensive performance, as being able to identify free spaces and anticipate opposing players’ movements is crucial for high-pressing teams, such as Manchester City, who want everyone involved in pressuring their opponents.

The winger position in Pep’s team suggests that the player needs to have strong link-up play abilities and versatility to facilitate positional interchanges.

The winger is also required to have strong finishing to support the offensive movement and provide a threat from different zones.

Jérémy Doku Data Profile

In this section, we focus on comparing Doku’s numbers to those of the players in the same position in the Premier League.

This helps us identify some tendencies in his game and highlight his strengths.

We’re starting with the most underestimated part of his performance – his defensive contribution.

While the 21-year-old is constantly praised for his dribbling and success in 1vs1 situations, this is only a small part of Jérémy Doku’s skills.

Guardiola acquired a defensively persistent player with high awareness out of possession.

The above scatter plot compares the Defensive duels won, % next to the Defensive duels per 90 of all top-tier left-wingers/left-attacking midfielders who have played 4+ games in the current 2023/24 season.

As it suggests, Doku is one of the best performers in that indicator, with a considerably high frequency of defensive interactions and the third-best success rate.

That demonstrates his willingness to take control of the ball and his tendency to support his teammates in every phase of the game.

The Belgian international also averages 4.09 possession-adjusted interceptions, demonstrating his ability to anticipate and execute his technique effectively.

The plot above illustrates the number of left-wingers passing.

As shown, Doku has one of the highest passing frequencies in the league, which is prompted by City’s high intensity.

However, his passing accuracy is around the average for his position in the league, indicating that he has the potential to improve and become even more beneficial to the team.

Despite his success rate being under 80%, he still pulls off a strong performance through his short passing and link-up play.

As shown above, the number of his dribbling attempts per 90 minutes is almost off the charts, as he is the only player with 10 or more dribbles per game.

Only Tottenham’s Ivan Perišić can partly compete with that achievement. 

His crossing numbers are also quite high, as he is one of the best providers in the Premier League.

To highlight Doku’s ball progression skills and his offensive prowess, we have also compared the wingers’ progressive runs per 90 minutes to their Offensive duels per 90 minutes. 

The frequency and success of the 21-year-old’s offensive duels go hand in hand with his dribbling. 

The high number of progressive runs shows his ability to continuously control the ball and advance it, drawing the team forward as well.

Jérémy Doku Ball Progression & Final Third Impact

The Belgian international’s role in Manchester City’s ball progression is not only focused on advancing the ball in the final third and crossing it.

Due to his clever positioning and pace, the youngster would often drop deeper to receive the ball.

While moving up and down the touchline is his speciality, he frequently moves to the half-spaces to provide a passing option for his teammates.

That allows positional interchanges and gives the full-backs a chance to overlap while Doku combines with his teammates centrally.

He relies on a combination of lateral, forward, and back passes.

The number of his back passes is high, and while at first glance it may appear that he’s insecure and has difficulties breaking through defences, that’s not true.

His back passes are essential for City, as he successfully advances the ball and sets his teammates up through his back diagonal passes, as illustrated by Doku’s pass map.

That allows The Citizens to be more unpredictable and use runs from deep to outplay the opposition and shoot.

Jérémy Doku Passes Map

Doku’s pace and composure enable him to escape pressure and move past the opposing defensive lines through acceleration, joining the attack, and creating opportunities.

He can exploit space and create space equally well.

That’s why he is so successful in delivering the ball to critical areas.

The Belgian international’s passing accuracy could be improved, though, as it sometimes results in wasting perfect goalscoring opportunities despite his excellent vision and spatial awareness.

The image below illustrates such a situation.

Doku was with the ball during City’s counter-attack and had the idea and the perfect opportunity to send a through ball to Phil Foden and completely dismiss the opposing defenders. 

However, his pass was way too long and inaccurate, ending up in the goalkeeper’s hands.

That’s an example of the former Stade Rennais player’s ability to identify spaces, but also of where he can improve.

Doku not only uses space to create for his teammates.

He also successfully exploits spaces between the opposition’s lines to act as a passing outlet and link-up-play.

Once he receives the ball, his composure and outstanding dribbling allow him to move even further and threaten the goal.

Jérémy Doku’s good first touch makes him a good option for receiving and controlling long balls.

That’s very beneficial for Pep’s side to switch play.

The following sequence shows how City opted for a switch of play.

The 21-year-old received the ball and immediately lured his marker out of his way through his dribbling.

Once he advanced it even more, he crossed it right behind the defence into the six-yard box.

The 21-year-old received the ball and immediately lured his marker out of his way through his dribbling.

Once he advanced it even more, he crossed it right behind the defence into the six-yard box.

The Belgian is well-built and receives successfully with his back to the goal, as his physique and composure on the ball allow him to take on defenders.

He often uses his body to protect the ball, which frequently results in him being fouled (2.49 fouls per 90 minutes), giving The Citizens a perfect opportunity to expose the opposition through set pieces.

By averaging 12.68 dribbling attempts per 90 minutes, Doku increases City’s chances of creating goal-scoring opportunities, as once he advances the ball, he can equally well cross to the six-yard box, lay it off for a teammate coming from behind, or shoot.

His ability to use both feet enhances his all-around skill.

The following map shows Doku’s penetrating carries.

It demonstrates Jérémy Doku’s ball control and ability to progress it successfully, breaking through defences and delivering it to the box.

Jérémy Doku Penetrating Carries Map

The example below, on the other hand, shows his ability to do layoffs.

He delivered the ball deep into the opposition half and then laid it off for Julián Álvarez, who eventually scored.

Doku’s pace and ball control add to Manchester City’s counter-attacking options.

Similar to Erling Haaland, he drops deeper and waits on the counter, which can lead to them combining well and exposing their opponents through their pace and physicality. 

The following image illustrates how well they can combine.

Haaland won the first ball and immediately sent it back to Julián Álvarez.

Meanwhile, Doku initiated his off-the-ball movement to receive the ball further up the pitch.

Álvarez passed the ball to him, and the Belgian outplayed the opposition through his pace and close control. 

Doku provides a direct threat to the goal as well.

At the same time, the frequency of his shots isn’t as high as the other Premier League wingers’; he moves into crucial areas, which allows him to have a considerably high accuracy rate.

He would predominantly move into the half spaces and try to shoot from tight angles, which makes it difficult for defenders and goalkeepers to predict his movement.

The sequence below is an example of his movement.

His frequency numbers are the lowest among the attackers at City.

However, his overall contribution is much more valuable for the team as it increases their explosiveness in attack.

Jérémy Doku Defensive Performance

The ex-Rennes player is solid defensively as well.

Compared to the other attacking plays, Doku’s defensive contribution is irreplaceable. 

He is very proactive in counter-pressing and frequently manages to recover possession both through his positioning and direct interactions.

That’s very suitable for City, who tend to press high and require all players to be involved defensively. 

The Belgian international’s ability to hold onto the ball enables the team to retain possession as he wins his direct defensive challenges.

He demonstrates good press resistance, thanks to his composure and positioning.

Jérémy Doku’s anticipation skills enhance his defensive performance, as he positions himself well and contributes with numerous possession-adjusted interceptions.

Conclusion

As our analysis indicates, Doku appears to be the ideal long-term investment for Manchester City.

Being so versatile and successful at 21 underlines his potential to improve.

His dynamic allows him to be competitive enough in the Premier League, causing trouble to the opposing defenders. 

His ability to break through the opposition’s lines and provide both direct and indirect threat can be very beneficial for The Citizens.

Doku’s individual skill is right on City’s alley, however, but seeing how he fits the team’s cohesive playing style and the connections he made shows that Guardiola made the right decision to bring him to Etihad.