Which DM should Spurs keep?
Upon his arrival Mauricio Pochettino highlighted the defensive midfield area as one that needed improving at Tottenham with the transgression for the back to the front too slow. He wanted his two defensive midfielders to move the ball quicker from the back forward.
In the Pochettino system the two defensive midfield players play staggered slightly, one is more defensively minded and the other in addition to his defensive duties, is also tasked with getting forward and assisting play in attack. Thus while both defensive midfield players they perform slightly different roles.
The three who are the defensively minded in the Tottenham squad are Nabil Bentaleb, who has been the first choice for most of the season, Étienne Capoue, who started the season in the role and Benjamin Stambouli.
Étienne Capoue is totally out of favour for a number of reasons and Benjamin Stambouli is wanted by Marseilles, although Spurs are quite happy to keep hold of him. We have looked at each player individually in the Tottenham Hotspur Blog News (THBN) Player Assessments Series so now it's time to compare the three.
Played: 26 - 12 - 12
Minutes: 2,194 - 469 - 897
Pass Completion: 86.76% - 84.45% - 87.05%
Forward Passes: 61.74% - 63.96 - 67.05%
Key Pass Time: 1 every 156.71 minutes - 156.33 mins - 224.25 mins
Chance Creation Time: 1 every 137.13 minutes - 156.33 mins - 224.25 mins
Positive Attacking Action: 1 every 37.83 minutes - 58.63 mins - 59.80 mins
(Total Minutes divided by Shots, Goals, Assists, Key passes, Chances Created combined)
Tackles Won: 46.39% - 56.10% - 41.82%
Blocks: 9 - 1 - 3
Interceptions: 54 - 8 - 29
Clearances: 65 - 11 - 33
One-on-One Success: 84.85% - 71.43% - 41.67%
Heading Success: 59.65% - 47.06% - 66.67%
Defensive Action: 1 every 17.14 minutes - 23.45 mins - 13.89 mins
(Total Minutes divided by Blocks, Clearances, Interceptions)
Nabil Bentaleb comes our top in 6 areas: Games Played, Minutes Played, Key Pass Time (how often he makes a key pass), Chance Creation Time (how often he creates a scoring chance), Positive Attacking Action (how long it takes to have make an attacking impact) and One-on-One Success (how often he beats his opponent).
Benjamin Stambouli comes out top in 1 area: Tackles Won.
Étienne Capoue comes out top in 4 areas: Pass Completion, Forward Passes, Heading Success and Defensive Action (how long it takes to make either a block, interception or clearance).
Bentaleb is 20 (21 in November), Stambouli 24 (25 in August) and Capoue 26 (27 in July) so in terms of longevity and potential to improve Bentaleb has more to offer. Stambouli I feel, and so it seems does Hugo Lloris, has the game, the ability to play in the Premier League but whether he will be at the club remains to be seen.
Marseilles is his home town, they wanted him before we signed him and still do, but he'll be a better player next season for us I feel. Capoue has the game but operates too slow for our system and the off the field happenings have affected his future as has his attitude. He is the one most likely to leave and will be a good player for somebody.
If we can arrange a player to come in early that doesn't involve a swap for Stambouli then news linking Capoue with other clubs will grow.
The media seem to be making a mountain out of a mole hill over Nabil Bentaleb and the wage increase being negotiated. The quotes attributed don't suggest a big problem, merely an agent saying he feels his client is worth comparable to other midfielders. It's all quite normal stuff, he certainly isn't leaving the club, still it sells newspapers.
In the Pochettino system the two defensive midfield players play staggered slightly, one is more defensively minded and the other in addition to his defensive duties, is also tasked with getting forward and assisting play in attack. Thus while both defensive midfield players they perform slightly different roles.
The three who are the defensively minded in the Tottenham squad are Nabil Bentaleb, who has been the first choice for most of the season, Étienne Capoue, who started the season in the role and Benjamin Stambouli.
Étienne Capoue is totally out of favour for a number of reasons and Benjamin Stambouli is wanted by Marseilles, although Spurs are quite happy to keep hold of him. We have looked at each player individually in the Tottenham Hotspur Blog News (THBN) Player Assessments Series so now it's time to compare the three.
Premier League Games Only
Bentaleb vs Stambouli vs CapouePlayed: 26 - 12 - 12
Minutes: 2,194 - 469 - 897
Pass Completion: 86.76% - 84.45% - 87.05%
Forward Passes: 61.74% - 63.96 - 67.05%
Key Pass Time: 1 every 156.71 minutes - 156.33 mins - 224.25 mins
Chance Creation Time: 1 every 137.13 minutes - 156.33 mins - 224.25 mins
Positive Attacking Action: 1 every 37.83 minutes - 58.63 mins - 59.80 mins
(Total Minutes divided by Shots, Goals, Assists, Key passes, Chances Created combined)
Tackles Won: 46.39% - 56.10% - 41.82%
Blocks: 9 - 1 - 3
Interceptions: 54 - 8 - 29
Clearances: 65 - 11 - 33
One-on-One Success: 84.85% - 71.43% - 41.67%
Heading Success: 59.65% - 47.06% - 66.67%
Defensive Action: 1 every 17.14 minutes - 23.45 mins - 13.89 mins
(Total Minutes divided by Blocks, Clearances, Interceptions)
Nabil Bentaleb comes our top in 6 areas: Games Played, Minutes Played, Key Pass Time (how often he makes a key pass), Chance Creation Time (how often he creates a scoring chance), Positive Attacking Action (how long it takes to have make an attacking impact) and One-on-One Success (how often he beats his opponent).
Benjamin Stambouli comes out top in 1 area: Tackles Won.
Étienne Capoue comes out top in 4 areas: Pass Completion, Forward Passes, Heading Success and Defensive Action (how long it takes to make either a block, interception or clearance).
Bentaleb is 20 (21 in November), Stambouli 24 (25 in August) and Capoue 26 (27 in July) so in terms of longevity and potential to improve Bentaleb has more to offer. Stambouli I feel, and so it seems does Hugo Lloris, has the game, the ability to play in the Premier League but whether he will be at the club remains to be seen.
Marseilles is his home town, they wanted him before we signed him and still do, but he'll be a better player next season for us I feel. Capoue has the game but operates too slow for our system and the off the field happenings have affected his future as has his attitude. He is the one most likely to leave and will be a good player for somebody.
If we can arrange a player to come in early that doesn't involve a swap for Stambouli then news linking Capoue with other clubs will grow.
The media seem to be making a mountain out of a mole hill over Nabil Bentaleb and the wage increase being negotiated. The quotes attributed don't suggest a big problem, merely an agent saying he feels his client is worth comparable to other midfielders. It's all quite normal stuff, he certainly isn't leaving the club, still it sells newspapers.
Post a Comment