Dzsenifer Marozsán: How will she improve OL Reign?
The NWSL is gearing up for another season where teams will look to get back to playing regular football this season. Teams will be on the lookout for players ahead of the transfer window opening up. OL Reign, however, will be guaranteed to bring in two of three Olympique Lyon Feminin players after confirmation from [...]
Premier League 2020/21: Each team’s home and away records
We are in the business end of the 2020/21 Premier League season. Many fixtures have been rearranged for obvious reasons but all the teams have played at least 25 games. Manchester City are top of the pile with 65 points after 27 games. Fulham, West Brom and Sheffield United are in the relegation zone. It [...]
Ligue 1 2020/21: Which age group do each team prefer?
After the end of Matchday 28 in Ligue 1, the points table is very intriguing. PSG at this stage usually tend to lead the league comfortably but this time around they are second in the table, trailing Lille by two points. Lyon and Monaco, at third and fourth respectively, hold the remaining European spots. The [...]
Bundesliga 2020/21: U23 players and their xG contributions
We are 23 match weeks into the 2020/21 Bundesliga season and to nobody’s surprise Robert Lewandowski leads the chart for goals scored and Thomas Müller leads the chart for assists. Erling Haaland and Jadon Sancho lead the chart for goals scored and assists respectively among U23 players. The below visualisation highlights the leaders for expected [...]
La Liga 2020/21: Do teams prefer left or right-footed players?
These days players are expected to be equally strong in either foot. Players who possess this ability are used in different positions and have higher chances of featuring regularly in the line up. The following visualisation compares the percentage of left-footed and right-footed players in each team from the La Liga. The visualisation also gives [...]
Serie A 2020/21: The top 10 goal scorers and their xG
After 25 games into the 2020/21 Serie A season, Cristiano Ronaldo is top of the goal scoring charts with 20 goals to his name. Inter’s Romelu Lukaku is second with 18 goals and last season’s top scorer Ciro Immobile is third with 14 goals. The below visualisation compares the actual goals scored and the Expected [...]
Arda Kızıldağ
Who Is Arda Kızıldağ? Arda Kızıldağ is a 22-year-old academy graduate from relegation-battling Turkish Süper Lig side Gençlerbirliği. He typically plays as a right centre-back in Gençlerbirliği’s 4-2-3-1. The centre-back, who stands at 187cm (6’2”) tall and weighs 78kg (171lbs), has got just over a year remaining on his contract. This tactical analysis provides analysis [...]
Player Analysis
England’s women’s football team are spoilt for choice at the moment, with a new generation coming through to balance out the experience they already have. Young stars such as Manchester City Women’s Chloe Kelly, Chelsea Women’s Niamh Charles and Arsenal Women’s Lotte Wubben-Moy are all in the international picture. Alongside them is the Manchester United [...]
Ísak Bergmann Jóhannesson
Ísak Bergmann Jóhannesson Scouting Report At IFK Norrköping – Iceland’s Future Great
Iceland has produced some talented football players over the years, most notably Eiður Guðjohnsen and Gylfi Sigurðsson. The former won two Premier League titles with Chelsea under Portuguese boss Jose Mourinho, while the latter is arguably the nation’s best player, playing under Carlo Ancelotti. The national side has reached relative success recently, qualifying for their first-ever World Cup finals [...]
João Cancelo
After a disappointing start to the season for Manchester City, Pep Guardiola came to the conclusion that there were certain changes that he needed to make in City’s tactics to improve their form. The players also took responsibility for their roles, and the result was the incredible winning run that they embarked on, which looks [...]
Analysis
Space Occupation & Creation In Football – Tactical Theory
“It's like everything in football - and life. You need to look, think, move, find space, and help others. It's very simple in the end.” These were the words of the late and legendary Johan Cruyff who talked at length about the core elements of football. Constantly searching for and exploiting space is the fundamental [...]
Data Analysis: South American full-backs ready for European football
In recent history, we have seen many South American full-backs becoming an integral part of starting XIs at top European clubs. One of the best examples of this is Dani Alves, who had an enormous impact on Barcelona in their success over the last decade in Spain and in the Champions League, while he also [...]
Kirsty Hanson: Analysing her impact at Manchester United
Many people think of Tobin Heath and Christen Press as the pillars of Manchester United Women’s attack in the FAWSL this season, and that is partly true. Yet, the roles and impact of Ella Toone, Jackie Groenen and especially Kirsty Hanson are often overlooked, with the Scottish international not receiving the credit she deserves for [...]
Player Analysis
As Sporting Portugal won the 2018/19 Taça de Portugal title, Bruno Fernandes interviewed his good friend and teammate, Stefan Ristovski, as a good-natured piece of entertaining content for the Sportingistas. The Macedonian paused his celebration, took the mic and made a half-joking/half-serious appeal to his superstar teammate, saying, “Please stay with us for next season; [...]
Player Analysis
Oliver Skipp Scouting Report: Is His Return To Tottenham Closer Than We Thought?
Tottenham has produced some fine young talents in recent years, either from their academy or by buying teenagers for brilliant deals. The Mauricio Pochettino era saw the likes of Harry Kane, Dele Alli, and Harry Winks break into the first team and play an essential role during their stint with the club. Going further back, [...]
Teun Koopmeiners
Teun Koopmeiners Scouting Report: Is The Left-footed Dutchman Ready For A New Challenge?
The Netherlands has been producing some excellent players in recent years, with the recent focus on youth development paying off as a talented generation looks to be a strong contender at the upcoming Euros. It is notable that many of these players are still plying their trade in the Eredivisie – of the 31-man squad [...]
Analysis
Ibrahim Sangaré Scouting Report At PSV 2020/2021 – The Next Yaya Touré?
Ligue 1 has been a hotbed of footballing talent over the past few years, with numerous young players emerging at various French clubs before going on to make their mark elsewhere in Europe. One of those players is Ibrahim Sangaré, who moved from Toulouse FC to PSV in the Eredivisie last summer following Les Violets’ [...]
LASK Linz: Outplaying Red Bull at their own game
For the last seven seasons, the Austrian Bundesliga title has been won by Red Bull Salzburg. The financial resources of the Red Bull group have resulted in a recruitment and player development system in Salzburg that is the envy of a lot of clubs with more tradition and history. While the eyes of the footballing [...]
Sevilla FC
Sevilla & Julen Lopetegui Tactics: Graduating From Europa League
Sevilla are a fascinating club for a variety of different reasons. It is rare for a director of football to be more synonymous with the club than any coach but this is the case here as Monchi has become one of the most respected and interesting people in football when it comes to intelligent recruitment [...]
Gerardo Seoane: Why his direct philosophy is ready for a top club
This month I decided to look at a manager and team using a 4-4-2 shape with a direct style of play. Contrary to what you might think, we aren’t in the lower leagues of English football, but are instead looking at a team dominating domestically in Switzerland and competing in the Europa League, recently knocking [...]
Rennes: Analysing their build-up patterns
Rennes are having a slightly underwhelming season. Last season they finished third in Ligue 1, and as a result, competed in the Champions League this campaign. Yet they finished fourth in their group, and currently sit 10th in Ligue 1 at the time of writing. If they win their game in hand they will move [...]
Data Analysis: Does modern football allow top teams to invest in youth?
The emergence of top stars like Erling Haaland is nothing new to football, it happens every season. Top clubs develop top talents almost constantly and when they don’t they go to the market to get the best possible players. What’s different in the case of Haaland and other players we’ll look at in this data [...]
Data Analysis: England’s best winger outside the ‘Big Six’ for the Euros
While club competitions are reaching the business end of the season, the Euros are right around the corner having been pushed to this year owing to the COVID-19 pandemic. Despite the change in the footballing calendar this season, with congested fixture lists and a larger scope for injuries, some players have looked to make full [...]
Bipin Singh: What makes him one of India’s hottest prospects?
Scoring a lot of goals has always been an integral part of Sergio Lobera’s teams, and this is the case with Mumbai City FC as well. Mumbai City have scored 35 goals in the Indian Super League (ISL) so far (at the time of writing), which is the highest in the league. Credit for this [...]
Peterborough United: How Darren Ferguson transformed them into potential champions
Peterborough United and Darren Ferguson have been closely intertwined for several years now. Sir Alex Ferguson's son joined the East Midlands side towards the end of his playing career in 2007, joining on a player-coach deal, before retiring from his player duties in 2008. Between 2007 and 2009, the Scottish coach would lead Peterborough to [...]
Data Analysis – The Best Young English Midfielders Playing Abroad
There is a plethora of young English talent who have the potential to represent the country at a senior level currently playing first team football at club level, and this is the case in almost every position on the pitch. While English youngsters who are featuring in the Premier League are earning plaudits and call-ups [...]
Ciccio Caputo: Hitting double figures in Italy
It is no secret that some of the greatest players in football history have come from Italy or have at least played in Serie A. Two of the best players in the world in the past 15 years, Cristiano Ronaldo (Juventus) and Zlatan Ibrahimović (Milan) currently play in the league being the top goalscorers at [...]