Isaac Tshibangu scout report: what will the 18-year-old TP Mazembe star bring to Kompany’s Anderlecht?

At the beginning of the transfer window, Anderlecht announced the signing of the highly promising winger Isaac Tshibangu from the Congolese club TP Mazembe.

For most football fans, Tshibangu is a complete stranger but he was already mentioned by The Guardian’s annual analysis as one of the 60 best young talents in world football in 2020 and he was one of the most promising African players to still play in the continent.

Born in 2003, Tshibangu has accepted a pay cut to play in Europe under the former Man City and EPL star Vincent Kompany, who also has Congolese roots. In this Isaac Tshibangu scout report, we’ll see what the young winger can bring to his new club tactics and some areas of improvement his coaches should focus on.

Dribbling: quantity and quality

Tshibangu is a right-footed winger who plays mostly on the left side of the pitch. He’s usually very wide, looking to receive the ball to his feet and then run at defenders to take advantage of his pace and dribbling skills. His heatmap shows how he’s active mostly on the left and hugging the touchline. Later in the analysis, we’ll see if this positioning is optimal and the effect it has on Tshibangu performances

When watching Tshibangu, he immediately catches one’s attention for his dribbling. Regardless of the side of the pitch, he’s in and also when he’s in central areas, he’s trying to beat defenders with his dribbling.

Tshibangu is a very direct player and despite his young age and the pressure he faces playing at the highest level of the very physical and intense African football, he trusts himself greatly and isn’t afraid of running at defenders. With a very good combination of skill and pace, he’s a threat in every situation and has the ability to affect games by pinning his marker and preventing him from joining the attack.