These findings perhaps illustrate the value of statistics when you don't watch a player every week. I'd have never guessed Kerkez was one of the leading players for on-ball value, yet here we are.
Thanks for the inclusion of the OBV stats! Kerkez is a puzzling signing, given what we know about Edwards/Hughes not overpaying for talent. Don't get me wrong...he's got talent. There's no doubting his work rate as the stats you shared on forward runs + sprints show. While he has trouble keeping up with the most pacy wingers, e.g. Madueke, he's showed great defensive nous & a relentless attitude in challenges. The supporters will LOVE his attitude. He's also got very good progression data when u sum across carries & passes.
The stats don't show a player who's great on the ball though ... a low # touches & less accurate in passing when compared to his peers. He doesn't seem press-resistant or very strong technically ... will he be comfortable in the build-up? Until reading your post, I didn't have the OBV data which does paint a rosier picture of an elite footballer in the aggregate (hoping their model is right!!).
The fee is just surprising if true at £45 million. Cucurella is the only LB that has moved for a larger fee than that reported sum. Many elite LBs have been acquired for a lot less, e.g. Udogie £17m, Davies £16m, Cambiaso £10m. Perhaps the wages will be very low vs. peer LBs?
Your OBV data + Kerkez' attitude/work rate + Hughes' familiarity w him + trust that Edwards has signed off = I'm going with it!
I don't think his passing should be too much of a concern as he was playing for a team with the fourth worst pass success rate in the Premier League this season. He was above average for Bournemouth and slightly above expected on Statsbomb's pass completion model too.
Re the fee, it feels high but it won't be cheap to get a player from another PL team who has three years left on his contract. Villa spent £37.5m on Maatsen last summer, Arsenal £42m on Calafiori... in that context his fee doesn't look absurd if he's Liverpool's first choice and he looks capable of playing every week.
At 21, he should also potentially hold the position for the best part of the next decade, assuming the move works out. The fee won't seem so large if that proves to be the case.
I suspect Liverpool have looked at his OBV (or their equivalent model) and gone "yep, that'll do for us"!
Makes sense to look at the passing in the context of Bournemouth as a whole ... looks like Iraola favors a more direct (vs. possession) playing style. Thinking more on it ... my concerns re: press resistance have to be put into the context of Hughes' familiarity w the player ... no way we're paying that fee if Kerkez is a liability against the press or in possession. Thanks for the additional stats ... and the therapy session! :)
I watched a video from Pythagoras in Boots that mentioned part of his passing % was affected by his especially poor long passing % which can be somewhat attributed to many of his long passes essentially being clearances. Part of his 40M pound price tag as well has future growth priced in. I think worst case that we slightly overpaid but his production at such a young age combined with his attributes and tenacity lead me to believe he'll be one of the best five best LB in Europe for the next decade.
I guess it's broadly similar in the sense of trying to value everything, but OBV is just for each player individually rather than their Wins Above Replacement.
These findings perhaps illustrate the value of statistics when you don't watch a player every week. I'd have never guessed Kerkez was one of the leading players for on-ball value, yet here we are.
Thanks for the inclusion of the OBV stats! Kerkez is a puzzling signing, given what we know about Edwards/Hughes not overpaying for talent. Don't get me wrong...he's got talent. There's no doubting his work rate as the stats you shared on forward runs + sprints show. While he has trouble keeping up with the most pacy wingers, e.g. Madueke, he's showed great defensive nous & a relentless attitude in challenges. The supporters will LOVE his attitude. He's also got very good progression data when u sum across carries & passes.
The stats don't show a player who's great on the ball though ... a low # touches & less accurate in passing when compared to his peers. He doesn't seem press-resistant or very strong technically ... will he be comfortable in the build-up? Until reading your post, I didn't have the OBV data which does paint a rosier picture of an elite footballer in the aggregate (hoping their model is right!!).
The fee is just surprising if true at £45 million. Cucurella is the only LB that has moved for a larger fee than that reported sum. Many elite LBs have been acquired for a lot less, e.g. Udogie £17m, Davies £16m, Cambiaso £10m. Perhaps the wages will be very low vs. peer LBs?
Your OBV data + Kerkez' attitude/work rate + Hughes' familiarity w him + trust that Edwards has signed off = I'm going with it!
I don't think his passing should be too much of a concern as he was playing for a team with the fourth worst pass success rate in the Premier League this season. He was above average for Bournemouth and slightly above expected on Statsbomb's pass completion model too.
Re the fee, it feels high but it won't be cheap to get a player from another PL team who has three years left on his contract. Villa spent £37.5m on Maatsen last summer, Arsenal £42m on Calafiori... in that context his fee doesn't look absurd if he's Liverpool's first choice and he looks capable of playing every week.
At 21, he should also potentially hold the position for the best part of the next decade, assuming the move works out. The fee won't seem so large if that proves to be the case.
I suspect Liverpool have looked at his OBV (or their equivalent model) and gone "yep, that'll do for us"!
Makes sense to look at the passing in the context of Bournemouth as a whole ... looks like Iraola favors a more direct (vs. possession) playing style. Thinking more on it ... my concerns re: press resistance have to be put into the context of Hughes' familiarity w the player ... no way we're paying that fee if Kerkez is a liability against the press or in possession. Thanks for the additional stats ... and the therapy session! :)
Haha, you're welcome!
I watched a video from Pythagoras in Boots that mentioned part of his passing % was affected by his especially poor long passing % which can be somewhat attributed to many of his long passes essentially being clearances. Part of his 40M pound price tag as well has future growth priced in. I think worst case that we slightly overpaid but his production at such a young age combined with his attributes and tenacity lead me to believe he'll be one of the best five best LB in Europe for the next decade.
OBV, is this StatsBomb’s effort to make a number like baseball’s WAR? (Or oWAR, I guess?)
I do love a single number to describe something! This way I can seem smart and get on with being just a fan.
I guess it's broadly similar in the sense of trying to value everything, but OBV is just for each player individually rather than their Wins Above Replacement.