The Next Piero Hincapié: Scouting Top Ball-Playing Defenders Using Data Analysis – Scout Report

I’m back again with the second part of this series for Total Football Analysis, looking at using specific profiles and data scouting in order to surface and identify some interesting players.

Last week, I looked at the dominant defender profile, one of my own personal favourites. 

This time around, however, the focus will be on the other side of the coin regarding central defenders, as we concentrate instead on ball-playing defenders.

As I have progressed through different roles within football and recruitment, I have become more aware of my own biases—we all have them!

In the early part of my time within the game, I was obsessed with ball-playing defenders and central defenders who were comfortable on the ball and could break lines with their passing.

Being aware of your bias when scouting is important as it gives you an opportunity to self-correct or even just check yourself in terms of your evaluations.

On reflection, I think my bias has shifted towards dominant defenders who can win duels consistently.

That said, however, the holy grail is to find a player who can perform well in his duels and retain the ability to step in and break lines in the build-up phase.

Ball-playing defenders are still incredibly valuable in modern football, but their importance is perhaps more dependent on the coachs desired style of play.

There has been a clear and obvious shift within football, with teams wanting to play short in their defensive third and to be able to come out through the initial press, either through line-breaking passes or preset passing patterns, to move the ball into the middle third.

In this article, I am going to look more closely at some interesting players who fit the profile of a ball-playing defender. 

As with the first article in this series, I will start by identifying a strong profile of this type in a top-five league.

I will then look to identify two interesting players in the tier below the top-five leagues and one player from a lower-level league who has the potential to move up and develop.

All of this work is done through data analysis, with models built and weighted to surface players who fit my profile preferences.

Let’s start by looking at the ideal profile in a top-five league.

Piero Hincapié As The Ball-Playing Defender Prototype

When it came to selecting my ‘control profile’ for the dominant defender profile, I went to the Bundesliga with Bayern Munichs French international central defender Dayot Upamecano.

For the ball-playing defender profile, I will again visit the German top flight, this time to Bayer Leverkusen, where the Ecuadorian international central defender, Piero Hincapié, is currently impressing.

This is not the first time that I have written about Hincapié on this platform.

Back in 2021, I wrote this article, including the Ecuadorian as one of five young central defenders to watch.

Good talent ID, right? At least my data analysis skills have improved since then.

Hincapié has thrived at Leverkusen under their Spanish coach, Xabi Alonso.

Their style of play perfectly suits his strengths.

Piero Hincapié Radar Chart

Figure One

As you can see from his pizza chart, the first thing to note is the volume of his passes.