Robert Taylor
Robert Taylor Scouting Report At Inter Miami: How Messi Unlocked Taylor’s True Potential
Who Is Robert Taylor? Inter Miami have never really been a giant of the MLS. In fact, prior to Lionel Messi’s arrival from Paris Saint-Germain, you could even argue they’ve been on a downward spiral; a struggling team clinging for life. But they are reversing their fate as we speak, led by the Argentine wizard, [...]
EFL Championship: Five of the league’s most promising U21 players
The EFL has seen some fantastic young talent hone their craft throughout the leagues, with many of them going on to play Premier League football, whether through a transfer to an EPL side or their club winning promotion from the Championship. Some top names were made in the EFL — the likes of Dele Alli [...]
Away from the spotlight: Five players standing out in the second tiers of European football
We have now reached the point in most competitive leagues around Europe where we have come to the first international break, and the league is settling down. At this point, we have enough of a sample size in terms of minutes played to allow us to effectively use data to scout leagues that are slightly [...]
Analysis
Tottenham are flying in the Premier League. Former Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou was presented with an arduous rebuilding job in the summer, and after Harry Kane’s departure to Bayern Munich, it looked even more challenging. While many believed in the Australian manager, nobody expected results this fast. The sustainability of this early success is still [...]
Sean Dyche
Sean Dyche Tactics At Everton 2023/2024 – Analyzing Everton’s Defensive Issues
Sean Dyche openly admitted that he has “massive work to do” at the club following Everton's defeat to Arsenal. Despite some offensive improvements compared to Frank Lampard's tenure, Everton's start to the season 2023/24 under Sean Dyche has been disappointing, marked by a lack of victories and the lowest goal tally in the English Premier [...]
Real Sociedad
As the La Liga campaign began, Real Sociedad, under the fifth year of Imanol Alguacil’s management, did not enjoy the start they would’ve wished for, with only one win in the first five games. One reason is that the team has to adapt to David Silva's retirement and play slightly differently after the former Man City midfielder [...]
Analysis
FC Basel is the second most successful club in Switzerland, with 20 Swiss Super League titles. Eight of those titles were won consecutively from 2009/10 to 2016/17, establishing a period of domestic dominance for RotBlau. The club has also qualified for some form of European football every season since 1999. However, Basel are yet to [...]
Rui Vitória
Rui Vitória Tactics & Coaching Style: A Closer Look At Egypt’s Diverse Corner Kick Routines
The Egyptian Football Association announced the appointment of Rui Vitória as the new coach of the Egyptian national team on July 12, 2022, after the team lost by four goals to one against South Korea and by two goals to nil to Ethiopia in the second Africa Cup Of Nations qualification match. The Egyptian national [...]
Rangers Women: How Jo Potter has them hunting silverware once again
For fans of the Scottish Women’s Premier League 1 (SWPL 1), 2022/23 will go down in history as one of the most exciting seasons in recent memory, with the title race and the fate of the two Champions League places both in the balance on the final day and all three of Glasgow City, Celtic [...]
Analysis
Middlesbrough Scouting Report 2023/2024 – One Of England’s Most Productive Academies
In May 2006, Middlesbrough made history by fielding the youngest-ever starting XI in the Premier League against Fulham. The average age of the team that day was just 20 years old. Even more impressively, 15 of the 16 named in the squad were born within a 40-mile radius of Middlesbrough. Of the starting XI, 10 [...]
Premier League 2023/24: Pedro Neto’s season so far
Wolves had one of the worst possible transfer windows that saw their now-former manager, Julen Lopetegui, depart, with former Bournemouth boss Gary O’Neil appointed just days before the Premier League started. Amidst all the doom for the Midlands club so far – both on and off the pitch, one of the brightest sparks has been [...]
Analysis
David Martínez Scout Report At Monagas 2023/2024 – Why The Venezuelan 17-Year-Old Is A Unique Gem
When you think of South American football, the first thing that comes to mind is Argentina and Brazil, Neymar and Messi, Pelé and Maradona. You think of greatness, the biggest in the sport’s history. Their unique way of playing football has characterised them for over 50 years, which can be defined as brave, rebellious, inventive, [...]
La Liga 2023/24: Jules Kounde’s impressive start to the season
Barcelona have had a fine start to the season, winning five out of their opening seven LaLiga games. Only three players have been present in all of these games, one of whom is Jules Koundé. Since signing for them last summer, the defender has become an integral part of Xavi’s team. The defender, having played [...]
Joseph Oosting
FC Twente: Analyzing Their Start To The Season Under Joseph Oosting Tactics
After a fifth-place finish last season and prevailing in the playoffs, propelling them into the UEFA Europa Conference League playoff round, manager Ron Jans left FC Twente, requiring a manager heading into the summer. Luckily, Twente did not have to try and find a replacement for too long. They brought in 51-year-old Dutchman Joseph Oosting [...]
Analysis
Johannes Hoff Thorup Tactics At FC Nordsjælland 2023/2024 – Tactical Analysis
FC Nordsjælland has had a slow but steady ascent over the last few years, from occasionally finding themselves in the relegation round of the Danish Superliga to becoming a more established side in the championship half of the league to now being in a position to challenge FC Copenhagen at the top of the league! [...]
Creighton University: An inside look at NCAA Men’s Soccer’s most data-driven team
“The math should matter.” A brief quote taken from The Athletic’s interview of Los Angeles Chargers coach, Brandon Staley, struck Ian Sarachan and Aidan Reynolds. Assistant coaches for Creighton University in the American NCAA, the long-time friends latched onto the line and created a theme. The math should matter, especially for this Creighton team. In [...]
Data Analysis
In the world of football, the playmaker is often regarded as the heartbeat of a team. They possess the vision, creativity, and technical prowess to unlock even the most resolute defences, providing a crucial link between the midfield and the attack. As football continually evolves, the emergence of young talents who can dictate the course [...]
Serie A 2023/24: Marcus Thuram’s start at Inter Milan
Marcus Thuram was this summer when the French international decided to leave Borussia Mönchengladbach for free in the summer window. The versatile 26-year-old forward decided to join Inter after receiving offers from several high-profile clubs around Europe. Since joining I Nerazzurri, Thuram has settled in well, starting all league games. The below visualisation shows where [...]
Analysis
When Takumi Minamino moved from RB Salzburg to Liverpool in January 2020, there was so much hype around the transfer. The Reds were getting a player just entering his prime years after an excellent record in the Austrian Bundesliga. But the hype surrounding the transfer died down the following season, and Minamino was no longer [...]
Bundesliga 2023/24: Xavi Simons’ season so far
One of the most in-form players in Europe is RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons. The 20-year-old Dutch international on loan from PSG has created an impact of a different level in the Bundesliga, with only two other players having more goal contributions than the 20-year-old. Simons had several options during the summer — including staying at [...]
EFL League One 2023/24: Derby County’s underwhelming start
Eight match weeks into the 2023/24 League One season, Derby County are 13th in the table with three wins, one draw and three losses from seven games. They were one of the favourites for immediate promotion last season after getting relegated from the Championship the season before, after receiving multiple point deductions because of several [...]
EFL Championship 2023/24: Will it finally work out for Aaron Connolly?
Aaron Connolly, the former Brighton forward, is one of those who has yet to live up to the hype. When the Republic of Ireland international made his senior debut as a 17-year-old in 2017, he was expected to become the next big thing at Brighton, but a lot has changed for Brighton and Connolly. The [...]
Katie Bowen: What she can add to Inter Milan Women
Katie Bowen has just moved to Inter Milan Women from Melbourne City. This will be her first ever European and Italian experience. Bowen is a New Zealand international who played with Kansas City in 2016 before joining Utah Royals and then moving back to Kansas City Current in the NWSL. She also had a brief [...]
EFL League Two 2023/24: Jake Young’s impressive start to the season
Swindon Town's Jake Young is one of the form strikers in English football. The 22-year-old has had an impressive start to the season so far. At the time of writing, Swindon Town are third in the League Two table but have played one game less, and it is by no means a surprise given their [...]
Analysis
In the summer of 2020, Florian Maurice departed Lyon, where he’d spent 11 years, his entire post-playing career — five as a scout and six as head of scouting — to embark on a new adventure across France. He swapped the lakes and slopes of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region for the coastline and neolithic treasures harboured [...]
Analysis
Jorge Sampaoli Tactics At Flamengo 2023/2024: An Analysis Of Their Defensive Vulnerabilities
In his third adventure in Brazil, Argentinian Jorge Luis Sampaoli was appointed as head coach of one of the biggest clubs in South America: CR Flamengo. They had a rough start to the season under the Portuguese manager Vítor Pereira, and due to his experience in South American football, Sampaoli was named as his replacement. [...]
Bruk-Bet Termalica Nieciecza: Their ever-changing set plays
Bruk-Bet Termalica Nieciecza are located in a village where only 750 people or so live, yet that has not stopped them from taking the competition to the big teams. In the past ten years, they have spent their time exclusively either competing in the Ekstraklasa or battling for promotion back to the top tier, where [...]