WONDERKIDS 2021 - Outlook - Accelerating the adoption of data analitycs in football - Soccerment
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Accelerating the adoption
of data analitycs in football
WONDERKIDS
2021 - Outlook
January 2021
1
Who we are Data gathering solutions
We are a Milan-based startup with the In our view, at the moment the most scalable
ambitious mission of accelerating solution to gather performance data is
the adoption of data analytics in represented by wearable technologies.
football and bringing a higher degree
of objectivity to the Beautiful Game. In five to ten years, artificial intelligence will
probably permit reliable video recognition
Our ultimate goal is to reach all tiers of and any event happening on a football pitch
football, including non-professional players will be captured and analysed through a
and coaches. We strongly believe that a smartphone (video analysis is currently done
more widespread adoption of unbiased with human intervention and is therefore not
methodologies for evaluating performances scalable).
would greatly benefit the sport we love in the
long term. We are not there yet though and, for the
time being, wearables seem to us as the only
In order to achieve our mission, we are applicable methodology to gather data at
focusing on two main tasks: scale. In the past three years we have been
developing our first wearable device, a pair of
1. developing the most scalable and smart shinguards able to track the technical
automated solutions to gather football events of any football match or training
statistics; session, on top of the athletic performance.
2. designing the most compelling, user- For more information visit soccerment.com/
friendly and intuitive analytics tools and wearables or contact us directly (sales@
extract the highest level of intelligence soccerment.com).
from performance data.
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football
04 Soccerment in a nutshell
2 3
Data analytics Research and advisory
Data alone isn’t enough: you need analytics. There are two other activities which create
For example, if football clubs are flooded interesting synergies with the aforementioned
with huge streams of numbers, but lack the tasks: research and advisory.
internal know-how to interpret them and
extract actionable information, data becomes Research is a fundamental part of what we
almost pointless. It’s like giving all the prices, do, for two main reasons. On the one hand,
ratios and indicators on stocks, currencies it increases our internal knowledge and
and commodities to a person who doesn’t stimulates us at developing new algorithms
know about financial markets: the data itself and data visualisation and forces us at
doesn’t make that person an infallible trader. continuously improving the outstanding
To make good decisions, football teams need ones. On the other hand, it allows us to
data, of course, but they also need analytics to exchange know-how with the outside world.
make sense of it.
For instance, our research blog, active
We believe that in five to ten years all the top since 2017, has given its small contribution
football clubs will probably have the internal to popularizing football analytics concepts
know-how to easily understand the most and has created some stimulating chances to
advanced stats and extract valuable insights debate them.
from complex raw data and that by 2050 this
will likely apply to any football club (including Advisory is an activity which is very much
non professionals). connected to research. As we discover more
and more about how data can help a football
However, at the time of writing, the situation club at making better decisions, our know-
is different. Most professional football clubs how becomes helpful to various entities in the
do not showcase structured teams of data football world: the clubs, obviously, but also
scientists and their decision makers need many other actors gravitating around them,
actionable information. This is why we including players, scouts and player agents.
are putting so much effort into analytics
and find solutions to intuitively show data If you are a football professional and would
and easily evaluate and compare players. like to know more about our advisory
Our analytics platform makes intensive services, feel free to contact us via email
use of data visualisation to comprehend (consulting@soccerment.com).
football players in a few seconds, despite
skimming through a vast amount of data
(analytics.soccerment.com).
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 Outlook
Contents (as displayed in the original document)
01. 6-9
The project
02. 10-15
The methodology
02.1 Initial List of 100 Players 12
02.2 Ranking methodology 14
03. 16-117
Wonderkids analysis
03.1 Summary table 18
03.2 Adil Aouchiche (AS Saint-Étienne) 20
03.3 Harvey Elliott (Blackburn Rovers F.C. - on loan from Liverpool F.C.) 24
03.4 Nuno Mendes (Sporting CP) 28
03.5 Rodrygo (Real Madrid) 32
03.6 Nathan Collins (Stoke City F.C.) 36
03.7 Pedri (FC Barcelona) 40
03.8 Adrien Truffert (Stade Rennais F.C.) 44
03.9 Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund) 48
03.10 Mason Greenwood (Manchester United F.C.) 52
03.11 Mohamed Ihattaren (PSV Eindhoven) 56
03.12 Rayan Aït-Nouri (Wolves - on loan from Angers SCO) 60
03.13 Noni Madueke (PSV Eindhoven) 64
03.14 Myron Boadu (AZ Alkmaar) 68
03.15 Bukayo Saka (Arsenal F.C.) 72
03.16 Giovanni Reyna (Borussia Dortmund) 76
03.17 Flavius Daniliuc (OGC Nice) 80
03.18 Jérémy Doku (Stade Rennais F.C.) 84
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football
03.19 Odilon Kossounou (Club Brugge KV) 88
03.20 Florian Wirtz (Bayer 04 Leverkusen) 92
03.21 Eduardo Camavinga (Stade Rennais F.C.) 96
03.22 Curtis Jones (Liverpool F.C.) 100
03.23 Lassina Traoré (AFC Ajax) 104
03.24 Ryan Gravenberch (AFC Ajax) 108
03.25 Benoit Badiashile (AS Monaco FC) 112
03.26 Ansu Fati (FC Barcelona) 116
04.
Soccerment 120
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 Outlook
January 2021
02
THE
METHODOLOGY
10 Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football
January 2021
Initial List of Around time constraints, which ensure statistical
relevance, drastically reduced the number of
100 Players players that we could include in our Outlook,
which means that we had to exclude some
very interesting prospects. Here below is a
partial list of some of the most interesting
We took into consideration all players who U-19s that were excluded from our Outlook,
were born on 1st January 2001 or after due to time constraints (data related to the
and who – as of 31st December 2020 – had leagues we cover, as of 31.12.2020).
played at least 500 minutes in total and at
least 270 minutes in the current season, in
one of the fourteen leagues we cover (tiers
1 and 2 in England, Spain, Italy, Germany
and France, and tier 1 in the Netherlands,
Portugal, Belgium and Turkey). The playing
Figure 01 - List of some of the most interesting U-19s that were excluded from our Outlook, due to
time constraints | Data related to the leagues we cover, as of 31.12.2020
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football
02. The Methodology
Ranking methodology We thus easily filtered the top 50. Here are
some statistics regarding the top 50 list:
• the average age is 18.6 years;
The methodology by which we arrived at the
• the most represented leagues, with 8
wonderkids’ final ranking was divided into
players each, are: La Liga, Ligue 1, and the
two stages.
Jupiler Pro League;
• the most represented nationality is
First step: selecting the best 50 French (8 players);
• the most represented clubs are Rennes
The first stage consisted in ranking the and Club Brugge (3 players each).
initial list of around 100 players by using our
Soccerment Performance Rating (‘SPR’), the
algorithm we have developed to evaluate the
performances of football players.
SPR focus
The SPR takes into account every match event, weighted through ad-hoc
coefficients.
The various events (rebased to ‘per 90 minutes’) form the contribution of a
player to the defensive, buildup and attacking phase of her/his team. These
contributions are then weighted according to the player’s role (for example, the
attacking contribution will weigh more for a forward and less for a defender).
In line with what we do for the overall stats, we show the SPR of a player when
she/he has accrued at least 270 minutes of playing time.
In order to reward consistency of performance and limit short-termist hype, the
SPR is adjusted by taking playing time into consideration. At 270 minutes of
playing time the adjustment is 84.7%. It reaches 100% when the footballer has
played at least 1,800 minutes in the league (in most leagues, this equals half a
season, plus one match). Therefore, every additional minute above 270 and up
to 1800 minutes is worth 0.01% of SPR.
It is worth mentioning that the five players with the highest SPR at the moment
are (in terms of total SPR, i.e. the weighted-average SPR for all the seasons
available in our database):
• Lionel Messi, with 84
• Neymar Jr, with 76
• Cristiano Ronaldo, with 75
• Robert Lewandowski, with 70
• Kylian Mbappé, with 70
A total SPR of 70 is the threshold that we use to define the so called “world-
class” players, while for the “elite players” the threshold was set at 60.
It is also worth mentioning that the maximum level of a seasonal SPR was set
at 100 and corresponds to the performances reached by Lionel Messi in the
2011/12 La Liga: 50 goals (plus 8 shots against the woodwork), 16 assists (from
92 chances created), 176 successful dribbles, almost 2000 accurate passes,
plus other kind-of-unreal stats.
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 Outlook
January 2021
Second step: ranking the top 50 The performance curves, however, differ
substantially depending on the playing roles.
It is pretty intuitive to consider, for instance,
The second step in our analysis was to find how goalkeepers can play at a high level
a quantitative methodology to rank the when they are 35 years old or older, while the
top 50 players, excluding any subjective same cannot usually be said about central
inputs. In order to do that, we built a simple midfielders. The differences in annual growth
model, which included all the key variables rates for performance output, as expressed by
and indicators at our disposal to allow the our Soccerment Performance Rating (‘SPR’),
assessment of both the “internal” and “external” for players who are younger than 20 years
factors that influence player development, old and depending on their role is shown in
especially when compared to players’ the matrix below. The matrix was derived by
typical performance curves over their entire looking at the historical stats in our database
careers. These factors combine to define the and calculating the average yearly growth
outperformance or the underperformance of rates for each age group depending on the
a player’s career trajectory, when compared players’ roles.
to her/his peers. But first, let’s define this
trajectory, or what we call the ‘performance
curve’.
Performance Curves
Footballers’ performance output grows
substantially over the beginning of their
careers, until they peak at around 28-30 years
of age and then start to gradually decline.
Graphically, it looks something like the chart
here below, which we originally published on
our Instagram account on 23rd December
2020, where we plot players’ performance
output (as expressed by our Soccerment
Performance Rating) and their age. In the
chart we highlight the names of the main
outliers by age group.
Figure 02 - Age vs Performance 2020/21 - data as of 23.12.2020 | analytics.soccerment.com
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football
02. The Methodology
Factors leading to under- or lineup. Again, a useful indicator of how
outperformance of the average growth well the manager considers the player.
rates
• Percentage of times in the correct role.
Our model, as mentioned above, considers a This mainly tells whether the footballer
number of factors that can influence relative is playing in a team that uses a suitable
improvements compared to the role average. formation and/or fits well in the squad.
When it comes to “player-specific” factors, we
use the following variables:
• SPR’s recent trajectory. This gives an
indication of how the player is reacting
to the increased level of attention
and scrutiny. In some cases, young
players are able to continue meeting
the higher expectations. In other
cases, especially following a breakout
season, the players experience a
performance decline, which needs to
be carefully monitored and managed.
• UCL exposure. Playing in the Uefa
Champions League, in our view, is not only
an achievement for a young footballer,
it is first and foremost an occasion to
grow and improve by experiencing
the highest level of football, which
gives them valuable experience. We
take it into consideration in our model.
• Body Mass Index (BMI). We use this
as an indicator of a player’s current
muscularity and its potential growth over
the following few years. When a young
player approaches senior football and
the training sessions that come with
it, muscular growth is often impressive
and with the added strength and
explosiveness performances normally
improve. Some noteworthy examples are
the transformations experienced by the
likes of Adama Traoré and Leon Goretzka.
As for external factors, i.e. the so called
‘context’, we took into consideration the
following:
• The player’s league level (average SPR
for the league) and the player’s team
level (the team’s SPR). These are useful
indicators of how brightly the player’s star
can shine, when taken either singularly
or in combination (it is easier to do well
and gain confidence when playing for
a team that finishes up in the table).
• Playing time as a percentage of
availability (adjusted for the games
missed due to injury). This is useful
to understand whether the player
fits well into a team and the team’s
manager appreciates their contribution.
• Percentage of times in the starting
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 OutlookJanuary 2021
03
WONDERKIDS
ANALYSIS
16 Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in footballJanuary 2021
45
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football03.1 Wonderkids analysis > Summary table
Figure 03 - List of the top 50 players born in 2001 or after, ranked for xSPR (Expected Soccerment
Performance Rating) | SPR and xSPR data as of 31.12.2020
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 OutlookJanuary 2021
HARVEY
24
ELLIOTT
24 Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football03.3 Wonderkids analysis > 24 Harvey Elliott
SPR xSPR
41 46 team
Blackburn
league
Championship
nationality
England
Date of birth 04.04.2003
Height 170 cm
Weight 67 kg
Prefered foot Left
National team (U-21) 0 apps | 0 goals
National team 0 apps | 0 goals
Contract’s term 30.06.2021
Agent ---
Injuries nothing significant
Attacking
Defending
Dribbling
Heading
Passing
Vision
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
S W
Vision:
0.5 through balls per 90 Heading
mins and 0.24 Expected (22% success ratio)
Assists per 90 mins
strengths weaknesses
O T
Shoot more often
Another season in the
Loan to an EPL side after
Championship would risk
his successful stint at
stagnating his improvement
Blackburn
opportunities threats
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 OutlookJanuary 2021
Biographical notes
Harvey Scott Elliott was born on the 4th of
April 2003 in Chertsey, Surrey, approximately
29km southwest of central London.
Elliott started playing football at a very early
age and immediately showed great skill and
decision-making at Fulham FC’s academy,
playing with older players at most levels and
still being one of the best players on the pitch.
This led Fulham to realise that they had an
exceptional talent on their hands. He went
on to break numerous records: the youngest
player in the EFL cup (at 15 and 174 days); the
youngest player to play in the Premier League
(at 16 years and 30 days); and the youngest
player to appear for Fulham.
In July 2019 he signed on a free transfer for
Liverpool. He is currently on loan at Blackburn.
Playing style
Elliott is 170cm tall and weighs 67kg for Figure 06 - Heatmap: Harvey Elliott
a BMI of 23.18. He shows good agility and
speed, although he tends to get away from
opponents using skill rather than pace.
What makes Elliott really stand out as a success rate.
player, especially for his age, is his creativity. Elliott’s shot selection is not the most
He is capable of playing killer through- judicial (xG per shot of 0.085), although this
balls for his teammates, of which he has is perhaps justified by his shooting skills. In
completed 8 (0.49 P90) which is the most in any case, Elliott doesn’t take a high volume
the Championship (the second-placed has of shots (1.58 per 90 minutes), but when he
5). He is also exceptional using the outside does he shows good accuracy (42.3%) and
of his foot. Elliott has managed 0.36 Assists conversion rates (15.4%), resulting in a clear
P90 (out of 0.24 xA) in his senior career, outperformance of xG (4 goals vs a 2.13 xG
which ranks him 3rd behind Jadon Sancho this season). At Blackburn, Elliott usually
and Callum Hudson-Odoi for U-20s. These plays as a right winger in a 4-3-3 system in
numbers, coupled with 2.25 chances created which he can receive the ball wide and then
P90, give him a remarkable 58 Vision Index converge on his stronger left foot towards the
Score and make him the second-best assist centre to link up play, create chances for his
provider in the Championship with 6, at the teammates or take shots. He is often trusted
time of writing. Elliott likes to receive the with the ball and can also drop deep to help
ball in wide areas from where he can initiate the midfield in possession. His long-passing
one-on-one take-ons or play quick one-twos prowess also means that he can effectively
with his teammates in order to develop switch play when one side is overloaded.
attacks. His heavy involvement in his team’s Essentially, he acts as an advanced playmaker
play is highlighted by the number of passes with the additional threat of his dribbling and
he makes: 36.6 in the opposition half P90 shooting skills.
(well above the role average of 24.6) with an
above-average 73.3% completion rate. His Elliott has also played as an attacking
playmaking abilities are also highlighted midfielder or a left winger, and played
by his long-ball stats: he attempts 5.43 P90 well (providing assists in both positions),
which is more than double the average for his demonstrating the versatility of his skillset.
position, and his success rate of 63.3% is also For the 2020/21 season, he has been directly
significantly above average. involved in 0.62 goals P90.
Even though he prefers link-up play, he Even if he favours his left foot he can be
is a talented dribbler with great flair and effective with his right foot when delivering
completes 1.3 dribbles P90 with a 59.5% balls in the penalty area, especially for low-
driven crosses.
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football03.3 Wonderkids analysis > 24 Harvey Elliott
Potential and Outlook up several possibilities for him: it is unlikely
but not impossible that Blackburn will clinch
promotion to the Premier League, in which
case a renewal of his loan would give him
Elliott is making a big impact in the continuity while playing in the Premier league.
Championship, where he has the second A more likely option is Liverpool loaning him
most assists at the time of writing. to another top flight side in order to continue
his development and gain more experience.
In the short term, Elliott seems to be fitting in Another year in the Championship would
well at Blackburn, something not to be taken not be the best solution as he is already a top
for granted for a loanee. In our model, Elliott’s performer in that league.
Soccerment Performance Rating (SPR) is Finally, Elliott could be integrated into
foreseen growing by 11.3% in twelve months, Liverpool’s first team. He would be unlikely to
to 46. That level wouldn’t justify a consistent get many minutes as he would be competing
presence in Liverpool’s squad, but would be with Salah, Mane and Diogo Jota. But given
consistent with a top-flight team, especially his talent and the staff’s faith in young
considering that – Elliott being just 17 years talent he would surely get his fair share of
old – his potential improvement rate will opportunities.
remain very high for several years.
In the long term, Elliott seems to have the
talent to play under the Kop. Playing regularly
Conclusion
at Liverpool is going to be a tough challenge,
but the manager and staff seem to have great
faith in him and are willing to let him develop Harvey Elliott, a very skilled attacking
and then ease his way into the first team. midfielder, is impressing in his loan spell
It would be interesting to see if his future in with Blackburn, where he continues to
a team like Liverpool could be as a false nine, hone his talents as part of a process that will
playing killer through-balls to the likes of lead him back to his parent club Liverpool,
Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mané, à la Roberto sooner or later. According to our model, in
Firmino. Liverpool would have to significantly 12 months he should be ready for a chance
modify their playing style though, as Firmino in the Premier League, although a mid-
and Elliott are very different players. According table side would be more suitable initially.
to our “Similarity” machine learning algorithm, His best quality is undoubtedly his vision,
the most similar player to Elliott, in terms of which allows him to deliver spectacular and
statistical output, is another Liverpool player: effective through balls and a continuous
Xherdan Shaqiri. Elliott’s loan at Blackburn flow of assists.
expires at the end of the season. This opens
Figure 07 - Performance indexes U-20 Players: Vision vs Passing
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 OutlookJanuary 2021
MYRON
13
BOADU
68 Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football03.14 Wonderkids analysis > 13 Myron Boadu
SPR xSPR
49 49 team
AZ Alkmaar
league
Eredivisie
nationality
Netherlands
Date of birth 14.01.2001
Height 183 cm
Weight 67 kg
Prefered foot Both
National team (U-21) 8 apps | 8 goals
National team 1 apps | 1 goals
Contract’s term 30.06.2023
Agent Mino Raiola
Injuries nothing significant
Attacking
Defending
Dribbling
Heading
Passing
Vision
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
S W
Goal scoring
Heading
(24% non-penalty
(35% aerial success ratio)
conversion)
strengths weaknesses
O T
Highly dependent on assists
from Stengs and Wijndal
Euro 2020
Managerial changes
opportunities threats
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 OutlookJanuary 2021
Biographical notes
Myron Boadu was born on 14th January 2001
in Amsterdam, where he started playing
football for SC Buitenveldert. Aged 12 he
joined the academy of AZ Alkmaar, one of
the best in the Netherlands. Boadu quickly
rose through the youth ranks at AZ and was
included in the reserve team aged 16. He
recovered very well from two severe injuries
(knee and ankle) in time for a very successful
2019/20 season (14 goals and 6 assists in 24
apps), proving to have uncommon mental
strength and determination, as well as an
innate instinct for finding the back of the net.
Playing style
Myron Boadu’s playing style almost perfectly
encapsulates the modern ‘poacher‘, i.e. a
forward with an extreme focus on scoring
goals. The most famous poachers in world
football right now are probably Edinson Figure 22 - Heatmap: Myron Boadu
Cavani, Mauro Icardi and Jamie Vardy.
However, in some ways we see Boadu as a
more dynamic version of the typical poacher,
one that is certainly more associative in his – the ability to deliver accurate through balls
playing style compared to the aforementioned (0.6 per 90 minutes), which makes Boadu’s
forwards, but who also shares many traits in life much easier, perfectly complementing
common with them. Excluding penalties, on his ability to cut through defences. Owen
average the forwards in our database convert Wijndal’s specialty, meanwhile, is reaching
13.5% of their chances into goals, or one in the goal line to deliver fast, low cutbacks
every 7.4. Myron Boadu converts 24.1% of his towards the penalty spot for the upcoming
chances, or one in 4.2, in line with Cavani and forward, often Boadu. Unsurprisingly, out of
well above both Icardi and Vardy. 18 Eredivisie goals scored this season and last,
Boadu displays a much better-than-average 5 were assisted by Calving Stengs and 4 by
shooting accuracy (51.7% vs the 40% avg), Owen Wijndal.
which comes as the result of him taking more
favourable shots compared to the average The average forward in our database takes
forward (xG per shot of 0.21, vs a 0.14 average slightly fewer than 12% of his touches in
for the role). the opposition area. In Myron Boadu’s case,
however, the percentage is more than 50pp
Since the beginning of last season Boadu has higher, at around 19%. That said, this is still
scored 18 goals from 76 shots. Interestingly, lower than Cavani’s, Icardi’s and Vardy’s
all of those goals have come from shots taken percentages, as Boadu has a more associative
from inside the box, and most from within playing style. Myron Boadu’s associative
the six-yard box. To find the net, Myron Boadu playing style is also reflected in his heatmap.
leverages his two principal “weapons”:
spatial awareness and acceleration, which
allow him to gain an edge on defenders in
the first few meters, giving him more time to
line himself up for a shot. It is fair to say that
Boadu has a special bond with two players
at AZ Alkmaar, both of whom developed
through the club’s academy: creative
attacking midfielder Calving Stengs and left
back Owen Wijndal.
Stengs’s main skill is vision and – in particular
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football03.14 Wonderkids analysis > 13 Myron Boadu
Potential and Outlook Conclusion
Following last year’s outstanding Myron Boadu, soon to turn 20, is one of the
performances, which resulted in a direct best examples of a modern ‘poacher’, a
contribution to 20 goals in 24 Eredivisie forward with an extreme focus on scoring
appearances (14 goals and 6 assists), Boadu goals. A product of AZ Alkmaar’s talent
hasn’t started the new season anywhere near factory, Boadu has demonstrated his
as well, scoring just four goals in 911 minutes. special instinct for goals, although he does
The young forward is suffering from AZ also seem inclined towards the associative
Alkmaar’s fall in level this season, while he game typical of Dutch football. After last
may also be having some trouble meeting year’s breakthrough season, Boadu’s
the higher expectations that the public has performance levels have dropped, in line
for him and the team. with AZ Alkmaar’s. Nonetheless, we believe
that the transfer rumours about him will
Moreover, transfer rumours regarding Boadu
are intensifying and may be some distraction.
Last year, before the Eredivisie was cancelled
due to the pandemic, AZ Alkmaar were at the
top of the league along with AFC Ajax, and
many considered AZ favourites to win the title.
The abrupt end to their title dreams, as well
as the departure of key player Oussama Idrissi
are likely the main reasons why AZ haven’t
performed particularly well at the beginning
of the 2020/21 season.
AZ drew their first five league matches and
were eliminated at the Europa League
group stage. As a result, at the beginning of
December, Arne Slot was sacked as manager
and replaced by Pascal Jansen. Boadu’s agent
is Mino Raiola, who also manages Stengs and
Wijndal. With AZ out of Europe and off the
pace in the Eredivisie, the player and his agent
could even consider a move from Alkmaar
during the ongoing transfer window.
At the same time, AZ may prefer to wait
until the end of the pandemic before selling
Boadu, in order to book a larger capital gain
from the transfer of one of their top assets.
Moreover, Boadu is in the reckoning to feature
in the Netherlands’ Euro 2020 squad, which
would certainly represent a good opportunity
to attract further interest.
Boadu’s contract expires in June 2023
(according to Capology his gross annual
salary is €300,000), which gives AZ some
negotiating power.
AC Milan are looking for a possible substitute
for Zlatan Ibrahimovic, whose agent is Mino
Raiola. Milan and Raiola are supposed
to meet at some point todiscuss Zlatan’s
contract, which expires in June; might this be
a convenient time to discuss Boadu?
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 OutlookJanuary 2021
EDUARDO
06
CAMAVINGA
96 Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football03.21 Wonderkids analysis > 06 Eduardo Camavinga
SPR xSPR
45 53 team
Stade Rennais
league
Ligue 1
nationality
France
Date of birth 10.11.2002
Height 182 cm
Weight 68 kg
Prefered foot Left
National team (U-21) 1 apps | 0 goals
National team 3 apps | 1 goals
Contract’s term 30.06.2022
Agent Stellar Football Ltd
Injuries 22 days (Knock)
Attacking
Defending
Dribbling
Heading
Passing
Vision
0 10 20 30 40 50 60 70 80
S W
Tackling
(2.7 successful tackles P90)
Shooting
Dribbling (72% success ratio) (January 2021
Biographical notes
Eduardo Camavinga was born on 10th
November 2002 to Congolese parents in
a refugee camp in Angola. At the age of 2,
he and his family moved to Lille and then
Fougères (both in France), where he grew up.
The hardships for the Camavingas didn’t stop
there, as his family home burnt down when
he was 13. He has later recounted that the
disaster really motivated him in his mission to
become a professional footballer. His father
Celestino told him that much of the family’s
prospects were going to rest on his shoulders.
After attracting interest from numerous
scouts in his early teens, he joined Rennes’
academy.
Playing style
Camavinga is 182cm tall and weighs 68kg
for a BMI of 20.5. His lean frame makes him
an agile player, which in combination with Figure 34 - Heatmap: Eduardo Camavinga
his good technique makes him an effective
dribbler (72.1% dribble success rate), able to
evade pressure with apparent ease.
has the workrate to pressure opponents and
make tackles. In the build-up phase, he was
Camavinga is a surprisingly mature player
one of the main passing options for defenders
for his age, while his vision and passing are
when the team was building from the back.
remarkable for such a young player (91.7%
His movement and spatial awareness help
passing accuracy in his own half vs the 89.2%
him find the right positions to receive and
average for his role; 83.9% passing accuracy in
then distribute the ball.
the opposition half vs the 73.6% average; and
73% long pass accuracy vs the 53.6% average).
In the 2020/21 season, Rennes have mostly
Meanwhile, his composure is underlined
adopted a 4-3-3/4-1-4-1 formation, with
by the fact that he loses possession only 8.7
Camavinga slotting in as a right-central
times per game (well below the average for
midfielder. His broad skill set makes him
his position of 12.7).
a perfect match for this “mezzala” role as
His impressive workrate and understanding of
he has the offensive and defensive skills
the game also enable the young Frenchman to
necessary to impose himself in both phases
attempt an impressive 4.3 tackles P90 (the 6th
of play. This season, his change in position has
highest in Europe). Camavinga still has plenty
seen his chance creation and shot numbers
of room for improvement considering his
rise. Playing more in this role should help
tender age, both in the physical and technical
him improve even further in these respects.
aspects of the game, which puts his ceiling
Camavinga is already excelling in numerous
at a really high level. This season, Camavinga
aspects of the game at both ends of the pitch.
has begun to take up more positions further
His change of position hasn’t destabilized
up the pitch, which has already boosted his
him, rather his performances are getting even
chance creation and shot numbers. This could
better and he is becoming a truly complete
be the final step to add to his game. The sheer
midfielder capable of imposing himself both
range of Camavinga’s skillset allows him to
offensively and defensively.
play in an impressive number of roles equally
well. In his first games with Rennes at the
start of the 2019/20 season he mostly played
as a defensive midfielder in a 4-4-2 or a 5-2-1-2
formation, both on the right and the left side.
His speed and understanding of the game
make him an effective shield for his backline.
But when his manager asks it of him he also
Accelerating the adoption of data analytics in football03.21 Wonderkids analysis > 06 Eduardo Camavinga
Potential and Outlook of the biggest clubs in world football, most
noticeably Real Madrid, Manchester United
and Juventus, along with many others. Just to
add further uncertainty, Camavinga recently
Camavinga is already excelling in numerous sacked his agent Moussa Sissoko to join
aspects of the game at both ends of the pitch. Jonathan Barnett’s agency, Stellar Football
His change of position hasn’t destabilized Ltd. But despite the rumours, the player has
him, rather his performances are getting even come out and said that there is still time to
better and he is becoming a truly complete negotiate a new contract with Rennes.
midfielder capable of imposing himself both
offensively and defensively. Camavinga is Moreover, Rennes president Nicholas Holveck
currently showcasing a lot at Rennes, and a has stated that the club is keen on negotiating
move to one of Europe’s big clubs seems to an extension to Camavinga’s contract, which
be on the horizon. If he finds a good fit for expires on 30th June 2022. His price tag
himself, Camavinga could quickly establish was said to be around €80m, but the latest
himself as an elite midfielder. Playing with rumours suggest that the pandemic has
elite players will help him mature and refine reduced that figure to around €50m.
himself even further.
Rennes discovered this young talent when Conclusion
he was still very young, and as numerous
youth coaches have stated they helped him
develop without rushing him into the first
team. Nonetheless, Rennes recognized that Already on the shortlists of many of
his unnatural maturity for his age meant that Europe’s top clubs, Eduardo Camavinga
he was already set to make a difference in showcases uncommon maturity, confidence
Ligue 1. So far, Camavinga has played in an and composure, all qualities that he will
environment in which he can express himself surely develop further thanks to his strong
with continuity, something vital for a player attention to detail and work ethic. The next
of his age. In fact, Rennes has been the team step in Camavinga’s on-pitch development
that has conceded the most minutes to U-20s is to complete the transition from defensive
in the top 5 leagues and Ligue 1 is a league to box-to-box midfielder, which should also
that favours young talent such as his. Talent translate into more assists and goals. Off the
like Camavinga’s is bound to attract interest pitch, Camavinga will soon have to move to
from accross the football world, particularly a top club, something that the player and his
when he puts in MOTM performances against entourage will have to manage carefully.
clubs such as PSG and Marseille, and wins a
Ligue 1 Player of the Month award aged just 16.
There has been reported interest from some
Figure 35 - Performance indexes U-20 Players: Passing vs Defending
Soccerment Research - Wonderkids: 2021 OutlookJanuary 2021
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