Stats show Thiago arrival will elevate Liverpool midfield to a new level

 

So it's finally official. After months of speculation, Thiago Alcantara is a Liverpool player and his arrival has left Reds fans feeling understandably giddy.

There is, after all, always a dilemma for title-winning sides, who have the enviable task of trying to improve on what was the best team in the Premier League last season. With no glaring weaknesses to address, in terms of the first XI at least, finding an upgrade is not a straightforward task. While many are scrambling in Primark, Liverpool are taking great care in Prada.

Despite that, they've somehow managed to bag themselves an absolute bargain, acquiring one of the best midfielders in the world for what is a meagre £27m in today's market. Of course, that valuation was slashed by the fact that the Spain international had entered the final year of his contract at Bayern, but at 29, Thiago still has plenty in the tank.

The key to ensuring that the signing is the masterstroke it appears to be is reliant on the fitness of a player that has suffered more than his fir share of serious injuries. The fact that a player of his talent has never started more than 26 league games in a season is telling. When fit, however, his statistics are sensational.

 

 

While operating from deep in midfield has restricted his goal and assist tallies over the years, his underlying statistics in terms of retaining and regaining possession are superb. Then there is a level of balance and agility on the ball that makes him near impossible to dispossess when breaking opposition lines with a dribble rather than an incisive pass.

In that sense, Thiago has a midfield skillset that Liverpool's exisiting midfield can only really boast between them. The most often used trio of Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and Gini Wijnaldum - supplemented by the impressive Naby Keita - complimented each other well, with the strength of one often making up for the weakness of another.

It's Keita that is arguably the most well rounded of the aforementioned quartet, and indeed ranked second in terms of WhoScored.com ratings from the four despite making a large number of substitute appearances. With Wijnaldum's future seemingly up in the air amidst interest from Barcelona, we stacked up Thiago's statistics to the top three rated midfielders at Liverpool last season, which excludes the Ducthman.

 

Stats show Thiago arrival will elevate Liverpool midfield to a new level

 

The results in the above comparison are comprehensive. The only category covered in which Thiago is not among the top two is tackles, though a solid average of 2.3 per 90 when combined with an equal figure for interceptions (to make 4.6 per 90) actually jumps to the top of the pack.

While Thiago's metronomic and masterful passing is common knowledge, it's his reading of the game and anticipation that is furthest clear of the Liverpool midfield. Indeed, when you have a player that sees the picture in the way Thiago does, that level of footballing intelligence isn't restricted to his possession play. In the same way he can find a teammate where others can't, he can predict opponents passes too.

He leads the way ahead of Liverpool's current crop for passes (91.3) and dribbles (3.6) per 90 too, along with an exceptional 90.5 per cent accuracy. Meanwhile only Keita averages more key passes per 90, but his slender advantage over Thiago (1.7 to 1.6), can be attributed to the fact that he tends to play further up the pitch. The Guinean also boasts a slightly stronger dribble success rate (88.5 per cent), but Thiago's figure of 85.5 per cent was enough to rank third across Europe's top five leagues of players to have attempted at least 50.

All in all what you can see from the graphic above is the consistency of Thiago's numbers (displayed by column width). He's essentially Henderson, Keita and Fabinho combined, and offers more besides.

Improving a team as dominant as Liverpool's last season was never likely to be easy, but Thiago's arrival should elevate the Reds midfield to an entirely new level.

Stats show Thiago arrival will elevate Liverpool midfield to a new level