Nasri's surprising stats vs Silva

[Rorz88]

Anyone who pirouetted and passed sideways every time he touched the ball was guaranteed to have a high pass completion percentage.

Was thinking the exactly the same thing, i remember a couple of seasons ago, Leon Brittain had a better completion rate than Xavi but he only ever passed 5 yards to the side or backwards. Nasri never takes risk with his passes and doesnt look for the killer ball whereas Silva does, often.

Bit like lescott, his completion rate was about 90% too but he only ever passed to Kompany or Clichy lol

In the Premier League Leon Britton has no goals or assists to his name for either the 11/12 or 12/13 seasons.

This is exactly my point, yet he had a better pass completion rate than Xavi 2 years ago

 

[Dribble]

I like Nasri and since the day he stood in for Yaya in CM whilst he was away on ACN duty, I saw that we were using him incorrectly. In the two games Nasri played there he was absolutely awesome. Many fans called for him to continue in that role, but once Yaya was back, it was back to the bench for Nasri.

Nasri is the deep lying play-maker we lack. I've never been happy with us using two defensive midfielders and as has been pointed out Barca with Xavi and Milan/Juve with Pirlo have proved that you don't need two defensive midfield brutes to protect your back-line. A deep-lying play-maker and a ball-playing, box to box destroyer and a creative midfielder is what we need to make the most of the talent we have.

The ability to hold on to the ball and to create attacks from that position is more effective than just being able to destroy and pass the ball to someone who can create.

I agree that Nasri is superb in that CM role. Problem is that he cannot defend. In the Premier League, CM's have to be capable of defending.

It would be possible to plays Nasri as a CM if we were playing the 4-3-3, but we're not.

Apparently, we are going to try a fluid version of 4-3-3 from the Academy sides up to the first team and this is what our hierarchy meant by a 'holistic approach' to football matters. If Nasri's never given the chance in that position, we'll never know what he can do in the long-term. All I know is that the 2 times I've seen him playing defensive midfield, he's been superb and those two performances have arguably been two of his best since signing.

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/nasri-i-see-myself-in-defensive-midfield

http://www.thegunninghawk.com/2010/...midfield-attacking-midfield-and-on-the-flank/

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5283401,00.html


Nasri set for defensive role
Gunners ace admits he can play as a defensive midfielder

Samir Nasri has revealed that he can see himself playing as a defensive midfielder for Arsenal in the coming seasons.

The 21-year-old's comments may come as a surprise to some with the Frenchman deployed behind the strikers for former club Marseille and on the wing for the Gunners this term.

But Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is thought to see the midfielder in a more defensive role in front of the back four, in the mould of AC Milan ace Andrea Pirlo.

Wenger is not the first to make the suggestion with Nasri revealing that ex-Marseille coach Albert Emon and France boss Raymond Domenech have both stated that they see the youngster as a deep lying midfielder.

The Gunners have been crying out for a ball winner in the middle of the park for the past few seasons and since the arrival of Andrey Arshavin, Nasri has seen himself pushed further back, not that he seems to mind.

"I think so yes," he said when asked if he could switch to defensive midfield.

"In any case, I am more at ease in the middle. I have more influence on the game. Even if it isn't up to me to do the dirty work, I feel capable of doing it

I think that Wenger fella knows a thing or two about talent spotting and I think we're all missing the obvious too. The answer is right under our noses and to deploy Nasri as a defensive midfielder would make us more dynamic as a team IMO and less reliant on width from the full backs.

Up until this season, our width mainly came from our full backs and as Arsenal have shown, teams are now going to do a Wimbledon (or ManUre) against us and just hit the ball long in behind the defence.

If we were more dynamic in our set-up our full backs could then support the attack if needed, but in general they would just form a defensive block of four and defend which is primarily their job.

 

[Saif1994]

I like Nasri and since the day he stood in for Yaya in CM whilst he was away on ACN duty, I saw that we were using him incorrectly. In the two games Nasri played there he was absolutely awesome. Many fans called for him to continue in that role, but once Yaya was back, it was back to the bench for Nasri.

Nasri is the deep lying play-maker we lack. I've never been happy with us using two defensive midfielders and as has been pointed out Barca with Xavi and Milan/Juve with Pirlo have proved that you don't need two defensive midfield brutes to protect your back-line. A deep-lying play-maker and a ball-playing, box to box destroyer and a creative midfielder is what we need to make the most of the talent we have.

The ability to hold on to the ball and to create attacks from that position is more effective than just being able to destroy and pass the ball to someone who can create.

I agree that Nasri is superb in that CM role. Problem is that he cannot defend. In the Premier League, CM's have to be capable of defending.

It would be possible to plays Nasri as a CM if we were playing the 4-3-3, but we're not.

Apparently, we are going to try a fluid version of 4-3-3 from the Academy sides up to the first team and this is what our hierarchy meant by a 'holistic approach' to football matters. If Nasri's never given the chance in that position, we'll never know what he can do in the long-term. All I know is that the 2 times I've seen him playing defensive midfield, he's been superb and those two performances have arguably been two of his best since signing.

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/nasri-i-see-myself-in-defensive-midfield

http://www.thegunninghawk.com/2010/...midfield-attacking-midfield-and-on-the-flank/

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5283401,00.html


Nasri set for defensive role
Gunners ace admits he can play as a defensive midfielder

Samir Nasri has revealed that he can see himself playing as a defensive midfielder for Arsenal in the coming seasons.

The 21-year-old's comments may come as a surprise to some with the Frenchman deployed behind the strikers for former club Marseille and on the wing for the Gunners this term.

But Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is thought to see the midfielder in a more defensive role in front of the back four, in the mould of AC Milan ace Andrea Pirlo.

Wenger is not the first to make the suggestion with Nasri revealing that ex-Marseille coach Albert Emon and France boss Raymond Domenech have both stated that they see the youngster as a deep lying midfielder.

The Gunners have been crying out for a ball winner in the middle of the park for the past few seasons and since the arrival of Andrey Arshavin, Nasri has seen himself pushed further back, not that he seems to mind.

"I think so yes," he said when asked if he could switch to defensive midfield.

"In any case, I am more at ease in the middle. I have more influence on the game. Even if it isn't up to me to do the dirty work, I feel capable of doing it

I think that Wenger fella knows a thing or two about talent spotting and I think we're all missing the obvious too. The answer is right under our noses and to deploy Nasri as a defensive midfielder would make us more dynamic as a team IMO and less reliant on width from the full backs.

Up until this season, our width mainly came from our full backs and as Arsenal have shown, teams are now going to do a Wimbledon (or ManUre) against us and just hit the ball long in behind the defence.

If we were more dynamic in our set-up our full backs could then support the attack if needed, but in general they would just form a defensive block of four and defend which is primarily their job.

I agree with this. Don't know if we'll try it out as long as Yaya is still playing though.

 

[green pennies]

Hello everyone,

Some of the statistics from last season were quite surprising to me. In particular, these pass completion stats from the premier league:

David Silva Pass Completion was 85.4%

Samir Nasri Pass Completion was 90.8%

Now, it must be pointed out that Silva made about 12 more passes per game, however it also shows just how valuable Nasri is to our team. We were very quick to write Nasri off, even though he is still 26 years old, simply to make way for Isco. (By the way, I've seen Isco play for Real Madrid and he's a quality player offensively in terms of creativity, dribbling and passing, but he simply does not provide enough defensively and can lose the ball quite easily. He's only 20 so its understandable.)

It could also have something to do with Nasri's more cautious approach. This is of course a good thing as Silva is the man to take risks and try out difficult passes and dribbles whereas Nasri will be relied on to hold up the ball and pass the ball around safely. Every team needs this balance just like with Iniesta & Xavi, Schweinsteigger & Kroos etc.

Nasri also provided 7 assists and scored a couple of important goals. Silva did 1 better in terms of assists, and scored 2 more goals. Arguably both of them had rather poor seasons and we can only hope they will improve this year under a new system and style.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=41XBcSn4Rfs[/youtube]

Either way, I'm just making a point that we are undervaluing Nasri even though his stats were very much comparable to Silva's. Just as we were undervaluing Dzeko (not anymore I think). I'm not sure where this player preference or rejection stems from but I think everyone is susceptible to doing this. Perhaps its because of the media or that we are taking a player's reputation or achievements with the national team into account. Both players can improve next season, but they are a lot closer in terms of ability than many people think. The burden on these two players is especially higher now that Tevez has left although we add a new dimension with Navas and Jovetic.

Oh another video.

I actually don't mind the videos for the most part, but this is getting a bit silly.

 

[rastus]

I like Nasri and since the day he stood in for Yaya in CM whilst he was away on ACN duty, I saw that we were using him incorrectly. In the two games Nasri played there he was absolutely awesome. Many fans called for him to continue in that role, but once Yaya was back, it was back to the bench for Nasri.

Nasri is the deep lying play-maker we lack. I've never been happy with us using two defensive midfielders and as has been pointed out Barca with Xavi and Milan/Juve with Pirlo have proved that you don't need two defensive midfield brutes to protect your back-line. A deep-lying play-maker and a ball-playing, box to box destroyer and a creative midfielder is what we need to make the most of the talent we have.

The ability to hold on to the ball and to create attacks from that position is more effective than just being able to destroy and pass the ball to someone who can create.

I agree that Nasri is superb in that CM role. Problem is that he cannot defend. In the Premier League, CM's have to be capable of defending.

It would be possible to plays Nasri as a CM if we were playing the 4-3-3, but we're not.

Apparently, we are going to try a fluid version of 4-3-3 from the Academy sides up to the first team and this is what our hierarchy meant by a 'holistic approach' to football matters. If Nasri's never given the chance in that position, we'll never know what he can do in the long-term. All I know is that the 2 times I've seen him playing defensive midfield, he's been superb and those two performances have arguably been two of his best since signing.

http://www.arsenal.com/news/news-archive/nasri-i-see-myself-in-defensive-midfield

http://www.thegunninghawk.com/2010/...midfield-attacking-midfield-and-on-the-flank/

http://www.skysports.com/story/0,19528,11670_5283401,00.html


Nasri set for defensive role
Gunners ace admits he can play as a defensive midfielder

Samir Nasri has revealed that he can see himself playing as a defensive midfielder for Arsenal in the coming seasons.

The 21-year-old's comments may come as a surprise to some with the Frenchman deployed behind the strikers for former club Marseille and on the wing for the Gunners this term.

But Arsenal boss Arsene Wenger is thought to see the midfielder in a more defensive role in front of the back four, in the mould of AC Milan ace Andrea Pirlo.

Wenger is not the first to make the suggestion with Nasri revealing that ex-Marseille coach Albert Emon and France boss Raymond Domenech have both stated that they see the youngster as a deep lying midfielder.

The Gunners have been crying out for a ball winner in the middle of the park for the past few seasons and since the arrival of Andrey Arshavin, Nasri has seen himself pushed further back, not that he seems to mind.

"I think so yes," he said when asked if he could switch to defensive midfield.

"In any case, I am more at ease in the middle. I have more influence on the game. Even if it isn't up to me to do the dirty work, I feel capable of doing it

I think that Wenger fella knows a thing or two about talent spotting and I think we're all missing the obvious too. The answer is right under our noses and to deploy Nasri as a defensive midfielder would make us more dynamic as a team IMO and less reliant on width from the full backs.

Up until this season, our width mainly came from our full backs and as Arsenal have shown, teams are now going to do a Wimbledon (or ManUre) against us and just hit the ball long in behind the defence.

If we were more dynamic in our set-up our full backs could then support the attack if needed, but in general they would just form a defensive block of four and defend which is primarily their job.

Hmm it just might work, Pellers has tried Nasri in the centre of midfield and to me that was fruitful, on the left wing he is wasted

 

[Mr. Aguia]

Trying to catch up with this thread but struggling.

Which band is Nasri in and are they better than Joy Division?

Evryone is better than joy Division because they are rag lovers.

My issue with this concept is this thread starts with "Some of the statistics from last season were quite surprising to me. In particular, these pass completion stats from the premier league:" but then only points out 1 stat, pass completion. A fine stat but not the only stat. Even looking at every stat doesn't tell the whole story and only looking at 1 stat that can be very misleading doesn't tell us much of anything. The fact that Silva had a very mediocre season by his standards yet Mancini chose him over Nasri 9 x's out of 10 tells us something. That he scored 2x's as many goals tells us something. What would tell us something more would be how many chances each created and how many fast break chances did Nasri kill with his 360 pirouettes? How many goals did we score with Silva on the pitch vs without and likewise with Nasri? That would be more interesting.

 

[rastus]

Trying to catch up with this thread but struggling.

Which band is Nasri in and are they better than Joy Division?

Evryone is better than joy Division because they are rag lovers.

My issue with this concept is this thread starts with "Some of the statistics from last season were quite surprising to me. In particular, these pass completion stats from the premier league:" but then only points out 1 stat, pass completion. A fine stat but not the only stat. Even looking at every stat doesn't tell the whole story and only looking at 1 stat that can be very misleading doesn't tell us much of anything. The fact that Silva had a very mediocre season by his standards yet Mancini chose him over Nasri 9 x's out of 10 tells us something. That he scored 2x's as many goals tells us something. What would tell us something more would be how many chances each created and how many fast break chances did Nasri kill with his 360 pirouettes? How many goals did we score with Silva on the pitch vs without and likewise with Nasri? That would be more interesting.

Play a player out of his best position is not great 80% of the time, theres a stat

 

[Dribble]

Trying to catch up with this thread but struggling.

Which band is Nasri in and are they better than Joy Division?

Evryone is better than joy Division because they are rag lovers.

My issue with this concept is this thread starts with "Some of the statistics from last season were quite surprising to me. In particular, these pass completion stats from the premier league:" but then only points out 1 stat, pass completion. A fine stat but not the only stat. Even looking at every stat doesn't tell the whole story and only looking at 1 stat that can be very misleading doesn't tell us much of anything. The fact that Silva had a very mediocre season by his standards yet Mancini chose him over Nasri 9 x's out of 10 tells us something. That he scored 2x's as many goals tells us something. What would tell us something more would be how many chances each created and how many fast break chances did Nasri kill with his 360 pirouettes? How many goals did we score with Silva on the pitch vs without and likewise with Nasri? That would be more interesting.

Play a player out of his best position is not great 80% of the time, theres a stat

^^^This^^^

 

[carlos tevez is a blue]

Have saif and Bob bummed whilst listening to The Gliding Ghosts yet?

 

[Saif1994]

Have saif and Bob bummed whilst listening to The Gliding Ghosts yet?

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1XZGHOxnCto[/youtube]