Tap For Menu  
Single word yields best result

Football News: Five Defenders Manchester United Could Realistically Acquire

Five Defenders Manchester United Could Realistically Acquire
Image from: freelargeimages.com

Hi all,

I think we all agree that defensively there is plenty of room for improvement at Manchester United this Summer, so I've researched 5 defenders that I think are realistic signings and I'd like to share my findings with you. All stats taken from squawka.com.

The 5 Defenders are:
Maguire, Koulibaly, Romagnoli, Ake, Alderweireld

Pass/ Shot blocking:
Ake wins in this area. He has blocked more oppo plays overall and this includes most shots. He has blocked the least amount of passes however when this particular stat is compared to the others. Koulibaly, Romagnoli and Alderweireld all shared the winning stat here.

Cross blocking:
All performed well here except Maguire. His '1' cross block this season compared badly to 6s and 7s of the other 4.

Clearances:
A tricky stat to judge in the modern day as a lot of teams are now favour playing out from the back. Having said that, Ake wins this stat again by a considerable margin. Koulibaly and Maguire both poor in comparison to the others.

Defensive errors:
Both in terms of those that led to goals and those that didn't, Maguire won these less-desirable stats. Interestingly, none of the others included here made any errors except for Romagnoli who made 1 that didn't lead to a goal.

Bookings:
Koulibaly was the way out leader here (8) compared to 2nd Maguire (5).

Possession:
Koulibaly wins this stat by some distance. He very rarely gives the ball away. Romagnoli is 2nd in this area and Ake 3rd. The Italian league sees a much more defensive style of the game and thus defenders generally have more time on the ball than in the Prem.

Goals scored:
Maguire and Ake both with 3 for the season. Romagnoli has 2.

Chances created:
A less-obvious stat to include for a CB but most notably Maguire is the winner here (9). Koulibaly (6), Alderweireld (4), other two less.

Summary:
Above, I have included the main stats I observed but there's so many to observe I couldn't include them all. Biggest surprises 1) Ake, statistically he would be a super signing for us 2) Maguire statistically isn't what I was hoping. Toby is a slightly older option who I would still sign as a player to rotate - I think we need at least 2 CBs. Koulibaly and Romagnoli confirmed what I already thought - both solid defenders. Koulibaly looks a little rash though in terms of temperament.

Hope everyone enjoys the read.

Written by KingGiggsy May 20 2019 14:38:39

 

Discuss rumours and transfers on our Manchester United rumours web page