Because they know they are only a stepping stone and will have to sell him eventually. Dealing with us, a club we allegedly have a good relationship with (Konate and Naby were both hard fought negotiations but ones both sides seemed happy about) makes sense, especially in the context of being able to provide them with a potential replacement in the short term
1 Like
I think Szoboszlai was pretty easy for us to scout and follow. Salzburg, Leipzig, their playing styles, doing well internationally (Hungaryâs captain and key player), etc. There are levels of course, scouting/following, being interested and actually deciding to buy. Even if we were not properly linked with him, I donât think this is a fresh, out of the blue idea from the club. But it might turn out to be one of those fast transfers in the public, like Fabinho and Jota were.
1 Like
LA LAH LAH LAH LA
SO-BOSZ-LAI
LA LAH LAH LAH LA
HE PLAYS ON THE RIGHT
LA LAH LAH LAH LA
HE SCORED AGAINST THE SHITE
LA LAH LAH LAH LA
SO-BOSZ-LAI
6 Likes
F*ck me, that could actually be the first real quality player song in a while.
George playing that tune during warm ups.
1 Like
1 Like
Torture non-stop in the 80s with that song
80âs never die.
3 Likes
Sadly
1 Like
Outside. Now.
1 Like
Dom doing keepy upies with his laces undone like Maradona.
2 Likes
Ruined Dom for me now. Iâll never get that Opus shit out of my head when I see him.
It is happening and you canât stop it. The 80âs is the greatest musical decade of all time and anyone who disagrees is an FSG apologist.
2 Likes
OK here it goesâŚ
This is the link if you want to see the spreadsheet in one view⌠https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/11Pw583eDzL933WjorsUrlNe-bEioHr-bjmodJrCfwlo/edit#gid=0
What I did is run all stats for 6 players. Szoboszlai, Mount, Bellingham and Thuram for 22/23. Keita from 21/22 and Ox from 19/20 (These were the first statistically relevant seasons for both players). Then Iâve simply go through the relevant stats (per 90 minutes), eliminating some superfluous ones, and highlighted in Red, Yellow or Green the performance.
Green = Highest âScoreâ
Yellow = Second Highest
Red = Lowest Score
Obviously there are some nuances that this rudimentary scoring system doesnât capture but it at least gives an idea on relative quality.
First is xG and xAâŚ
Szoboszlai performs well here scoring the highest in three categories including the main one for this section npxG+xAG - which he wins by quite a distance. In short he has the highest goals and assists rating per 90 excluding penalties.
Next is key passes and shot creating/goal creating actionsâŚ
Related but not the same as xG/xA. Szoboszlai again comes up very well here. He is way ahead in key passes - 1 more per game than anyone else. He also has the highest shot and goal creating actions (passes, dribbles etc). Thuram is by far the lowest scoring player in these categories.
Now for in possession/passing stats.
Szoboszlai shows up again with the second best stats in most categories here and the best for shots on target by both total and % (by a long way). He also comes second for total distance and progressive distance of his passing which shows an expansive range especially given that he starts from a more advanced role (suggests lots of cross field passes and through balls that we like). Mason Mount comes in as the worst.
Defensive statsâŚ
Certainly Szoboszlaiâs weakest category, he is a non-factor aerially and doesnât rate highly for tackles, tackle % or interceptions etc. He does, interestingly rate highly for ball recoveries though so that suggests he is good at being the supporting presser - not necessarily the tackler.
Dribbling is the final categoryâŚ
Szoboszlai is coming up as the 2nd best in most categories with Bellingham shining - as expected because heâs a beast. But Szoboszlai dribbles a lot, is relatively successful and does many of his dribbles into the final third. He also is only dispossessed 1.21 times per game so heâs very press-resistant.
Outcomes
Rating them by Green, Yellow or Red then it comes out as Bellingham has the most categories that he is the best at. Heâs great. Szoboszlai has the second, 9. Mount is the worst with 0.
Szobboszlai comes second in 12 categories, more than anyone else, Bellingham second with 9 and Mount is the worst with 2.
Keita is the player with the least âworstâ ratings, just 1. Bellingham and Szoboszlai are second with 2. Mount is the worst with 15.
TLDR; Szoboszlai is a very creative player, a good supporting presser but a non-factor aerially and doesnât win a lot of challenges individually. He rates favourably compared to Keita and Oxlade-Chamberlain.
Bellingham is a fucking machine. Mason Mount is absolutely crap.
17 Likes
Opus gay?
Phenomenal job as always
2 Likes
âThere are lies, damned lies, and statisticsâ- Mason Mountâs agent
âOh, fuckâ- Man Utdâs recruitment team
1 Like
This is pretty in line with the Pizza chart in the athletic piece
Ostensibly it looks like he is a passenger defensively, but the qualitative assessment of him in the piece says something very different. It is largely a reflection of the fact that in a high pressing side the players in more advanced roles tend to act more as funnels to force the ball into the areas where the players backing them up can win it, and by all accounts, after having played in pressing sides all his career, is very good at it.
3 Likes
Queue Man Utd scouts getting angsty.