In the 2011-12 season he was great in midfield, at the Etihad when we drew 1-1 Yaya Toure found him unplayable.
Fellaini could be a brilliant midfielder on his day. Any other statement is revisionism.
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Fellaini could be a brilliant midfielder on his day. Any other statement is revisionism.
To chart his progress, I thought it best to first take players of a similar ilk from the Premier League’s top seven, who have all seen a similar amount of action this season. Therefore, Scott Parker, Alex Song, Gareth Barry and Cheick Tiote all make the cut. Ball winning, retention and distribution are all core values of a defensive midfielder’s arsenal, and here are the relevant categories for this quintet.
The most revealing feature of this chart is Fellaini’s clear dominance and superiority in and around the tackle area. He is quite simply prolific, winning almost nine out of every 10 attempts, a ratio no-one can touch. In fact, his nearest challenger, Gareth Barry, is 15% less efficient in that department, itself a striking margin. Similarly in ground 50-50s, although Parker and Barry scarcely eclipse his success rate of 52%, Fellaini’s skill in this area is similarly powerful, victorious in 151 of these contests.
Predictably, Fellaini also posts impressive numbers in the air, winning double as many clashes as any of the others on this list, and at a far higher success rate. Interestingly, even with 5 less starts than Tiote, Fellaini is also the hardest man on this list for opponents to dribble past. This season, that has happened on just 21 occasions, whereas Alex Song has been turned, and left for dead 36 times.
Adding these results to the fact he has won the ball 127 times in midfield – a remarkably high number – it questions whether there is actually a better ball winning midfielder in the Premier League? Thinking these numbers could be a reflection of the top teams having a greater share of possession, I sought out a few more ball winners, from less successful teams.
As is depicted, it seemingly has little relation to a team’s possession and again the numbers remain hugely complimentary to Fellaini. Nobody is anywhere near as potent or effective in the tackle, and his knack of repeatedly coming up with the ball in midfield is further enhanced. Further research shows Fellaini’s haul of 127 is in fact currently bettered by nobody in the entire league. He is way ahead of Song (110) and Youssuf Mulumbu (108), who are next on the list.
When it comes to winning the ball, there are few better in midfield than Marouane Fellaini. He simply bosses the tackle area, continually regains possession and is rarely beaten by an opponent. Hopefully these numbers will impress football supporters not just associated with Everton, who may only catch the clips on Match of the Day that rarely showcase Fellaini at his commanding best.
http://eplindex.com/11381/analysing-fellaini-rivals-opta-stats.html/4
Crap at CM though.
bluemangroup
Player Valuation: £70m
*steps out of the way whilst Brennan links somebody to oblivion*
Hmmm.... Lazy and wouldn't track back, and yet that shows him winning loads of tackles, winning tackles more successfully, winning more 50/50s than any of his peers, and winning possession in the midfield 3rd more than any of them also.
NilSatis1878
Player Valuation: £750k
he was, i don't need statistics to create my opinions of players. yes, he can be amazing on his day... however once a month doesn't cut it.. anyway. back to that elephant romelu
NilSatis1878
Player Valuation: £750k
Hmmm.... Lazy and wouldn't track back, and yet that shows him winning loads of tackles, winning tackles more successfully, winning more 50/50s than any of his peers, and winning possession in the midfield 3rd more than any of them also.
woowwwww... he's getting compared to some top quality CM's there isnt he
Clearly not, as statistics are based on evidence and you just make stuff up.
NilSatis1878
Player Valuation: £750k
statistics would say bilyaletdinov was boss
No. They really wouldn't.
NilSatis1878
Player Valuation: £750k
Alonso and Khedira
toffee matt
Player Valuation: £60m
Repeating yourself doesn't mean that's his position mate.
He played deeper when he wasn't playing up top.
NilSatis1878
Player Valuation: £750k
that's the one... glad you caught on
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