Using the Discover Tool to find alternatives to Jude Bellingham
There is only one Jude Bellingham.
For a lot of clubs, that means disappointment is on the horizon.
The England international is being courted by a host of Europe’s elite and though reports claim he will kick off the 2022/23 campaign with Borussia Dortmund, there is a belief next summer’s transfer could be expedited if the right offer arrives.
It is a matter of when and not if the former Birmingham City youngster will return to England. There’s going to be a scramble to sign him but teams will have contingencies in place on the off-chance that they fail to land him.
So, who might be on that list of alternatives?
We used our Discover Tool to identify players who profile similarly to Bellingham in certain metrics. For the best possible result, we looked at what makes the BVB No22 so well-rounded.
So we included passes attempted, shots assisted, expected assists, dribbles attempted, shots attempted and expected goals. These six metrics will be weighted. We also set up the filters to show only midfielders aged 23 or under with 1,000 minutes across Europe’s top five leagues last term.
Now the Discover Tool has previous when it comes to being spot on. We looked at possible Virgil Van Dijk successors and months later Liverpool were linked with a player that had a 98% similarity rating.
This time around, there is a player on the shortlist with a 97% similarity rating.
Gavi.
The Barcelona maestro may play a different role to Bellingham but their output is eerily similar. Neither player is a volume monster in the sense they do not dominate the ball with 75+ passes per 90 – but they are so effective in possession. You can see it on the radar.
Both fall outside the 95th percentile for expected assists, shots or expected goals. But they aren’t far away. What makes their numbers so impressive is that they’re doing it in each of these areas as opposed to just one, all while ranking highly for dribbles attempted.
So what you have are players who are goal threats, creators and progressors. The holy trinity for a midfielder.
Gavi, however, is expected to sign a new long-term contract with Barcelona. So though he’s the closest match to Bellingham, it is unlikely he will be an attainable target.
Khephren Thuram could well be though.
The 21-year-old impressed for Nice last term and is reportedly a transfer target for Paris Saint-Germain after the Ligue 1 champions missed out on Aurelien Tchouameni.
Thuram is an all-action, powerhouse midfielder. He is deceptively tall (6ft3) and surprisingly quick. His similarity rating with Bellingham was 96% for those aforementioned metrics.
The Italian-born France U21 international penned a contract extension in September but that should not deter those looking to revamp their midfield.
Next up on the list, we have two more Ligue 1 midfielders, both with a 92% similarity rating.
Youssouf Fofana may have done his work in Tchouameni’s shadow last term but he posted some impressive averages of his own.
The 23-year-old isn’t at Bellingham’s level in terms of volume or output but he is not far off. The Monaco man is the definition of a box-to-box midfielder and he doesn’t let his height (5ft9) impact how physical he is with the opposition. He is combative and can be dominant in his own right.
The next name might surprise Arsenal fans – but Matteo Guendouzi profiles really well in terms of output, especially in these metrics. He thrived in the Marseille midfield and the French side have bagged themselves a £9million bargain.
If he continues to post numbers like this, it won’t be long before clubs are looking to pry the 23-year-old away from Marseille.
As these players prove, it doesn’t have to be Bellingham or bust for teams looking at the 19-year-old midfielder.
In this article, all graphics were produced in the Twenty3 Toolbox.
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