FromPollockToSilva
Well-Known Member
Firstly, this isn't a thread about the failings of our summer 2012 transfer window (as that has been done to death), nor is it a 'we've lost once since November and therefore need to sign loads of new players' thread. For the record I think we've shown a marked improvement in both style and substance this season, I like the manager a lot and I am very optimistic about what the combination of Txiki and Pellegrini can do to augment the squad in the summer. It's more an observation on something that I think we're missing as a team, and that's a player who can create opportunities by carrying the ball and beating a man, especially in wide positions.
If you look at the top dribblers in the Premier League (based on completed dribbles-per-game), City don't have a player in the top 25 in the league, and in fact only have four in the top 50. Our best dribblers are Sergio Aguero and Samir Nasri, with 1.5 dribbles-per-game (DPG) each. In comparison, Luis Suarez completes 2.9 and Eden Hazard 3.7. Hazard has completed 93 dribbles this season to Aguero's 26.
Moreover, the vast majority of our successful dribbles happen in the middle of the pitch, with our third and fourth highest DPG's belonging to Yaya Toure and Fernandinho. We don't have anyone in wide positions who can commit a man, create space or even draw a foul. It won't surprise you to learn that Hazard is also the most fouled player in the league, winning on average 2.8 fouls per game.
As we saw against Norwich yesterday (and on many occasions over the past few seasons), we can struggle to break down well-organised, unambitious defences, and a lot of that is to do with the predictability of our play. I like Jesus Navas, and he's an asset to the team when we're likely to have opportunities to play on the counter, but against a packed defence his play can be very one-dimensional. It's worth mentioning that Navas completes just 0.9 DPG, which is the same as Vincent Kompany. And Scott Parker. Equally, our lack of width on the left due to Silva's free role means that any attacking impetus down that flank is likely to come from our left-back, and against teams that don't leave space in behind for Kolarov/Clichy to exploit, we can appear fairly limited on that side too.
Liverpool, by contrast, have three players in the top ten DPG (Suarez, Coutinho and Sterling). Now I'm not for one minute suggesting that Liverpool are better than City or even a better attacking threat than us, because clearly they're not. They have however only scored 5 fewer goals than us in the league this season, and a lot of that is to do with their attacking players' willingness to take people on, create chances and force mistakes (or corners, which they actually score from with some regularity).
If we had someone like Hazard who could commit defenders, pull people out of position or just beat a man and drive into the area from wide, I think we'd be much harder to defend against. I am hopeful that a fully fit and acclimatised Stevan Jovetic could be that man, as he has the close control and movement (he averages 1.5 DPG so far, which is encouraging), but I still feel he prefers to operate a little more centrally than Hazard or someone similar, and perhaps lacks a bit of pace in comparison.
What do you reckon? Would this type of player improve us, or do we need to strengthen elsewhere as a priority? Can you think of anyone similar that might be available? Having missed out on Hazard and Isco (and signed Jovetic, I should add), it seems people at the club identified this as a potential area of improvement. Who should make way to accommodate this role in the team? With a fully-fit Jovetic I would maybe advocate the occasional switch to 4-2-3-1, with Nasri, Silva and Jovetic behind Aguero.
If you look at the top dribblers in the Premier League (based on completed dribbles-per-game), City don't have a player in the top 25 in the league, and in fact only have four in the top 50. Our best dribblers are Sergio Aguero and Samir Nasri, with 1.5 dribbles-per-game (DPG) each. In comparison, Luis Suarez completes 2.9 and Eden Hazard 3.7. Hazard has completed 93 dribbles this season to Aguero's 26.
Moreover, the vast majority of our successful dribbles happen in the middle of the pitch, with our third and fourth highest DPG's belonging to Yaya Toure and Fernandinho. We don't have anyone in wide positions who can commit a man, create space or even draw a foul. It won't surprise you to learn that Hazard is also the most fouled player in the league, winning on average 2.8 fouls per game.
As we saw against Norwich yesterday (and on many occasions over the past few seasons), we can struggle to break down well-organised, unambitious defences, and a lot of that is to do with the predictability of our play. I like Jesus Navas, and he's an asset to the team when we're likely to have opportunities to play on the counter, but against a packed defence his play can be very one-dimensional. It's worth mentioning that Navas completes just 0.9 DPG, which is the same as Vincent Kompany. And Scott Parker. Equally, our lack of width on the left due to Silva's free role means that any attacking impetus down that flank is likely to come from our left-back, and against teams that don't leave space in behind for Kolarov/Clichy to exploit, we can appear fairly limited on that side too.
Liverpool, by contrast, have three players in the top ten DPG (Suarez, Coutinho and Sterling). Now I'm not for one minute suggesting that Liverpool are better than City or even a better attacking threat than us, because clearly they're not. They have however only scored 5 fewer goals than us in the league this season, and a lot of that is to do with their attacking players' willingness to take people on, create chances and force mistakes (or corners, which they actually score from with some regularity).
If we had someone like Hazard who could commit defenders, pull people out of position or just beat a man and drive into the area from wide, I think we'd be much harder to defend against. I am hopeful that a fully fit and acclimatised Stevan Jovetic could be that man, as he has the close control and movement (he averages 1.5 DPG so far, which is encouraging), but I still feel he prefers to operate a little more centrally than Hazard or someone similar, and perhaps lacks a bit of pace in comparison.
What do you reckon? Would this type of player improve us, or do we need to strengthen elsewhere as a priority? Can you think of anyone similar that might be available? Having missed out on Hazard and Isco (and signed Jovetic, I should add), it seems people at the club identified this as a potential area of improvement. Who should make way to accommodate this role in the team? With a fully-fit Jovetic I would maybe advocate the occasional switch to 4-2-3-1, with Nasri, Silva and Jovetic behind Aguero.