CoolClaret wrote: ↑Fri Jul 28, 2023 12:18 pm
The point was his goal scoring indicates that he was a key player for us - and someone had to stick the ball in the back of the net…
It wasn’t to bash others in the squad and the comps with ZiZu to Lamps/Gerrard proves absolutely nothing. Different position for a start.
You’ve harped on about stats and underlying stats which are important but there’s on that you can’t quantify in the same way and that’s pressing ability and the ability to stretch the pitch.
Can you find any data anywhere about how many balls Tella nicked in transition to launch a counter attack vs Benson for example? Or how many sprints recorded per game, pressures on keeper etc etc
I don’t think posters want us to throw 20 mill at Tella, especially when we’ve already brought some widemen in… but say he was available for 15 and could be a key contributor in a pivotal season?… well I think fans have a right to question why we’d be happy to throw 14 mill on a young keeper (resale value aside) but not stretch a tiny bit to land someone that was pretty vital to our promotion last season, that also had unique qualities that are pretty hard to come by.
How many players have we had over the years that you could say have Tellas top end pace, fitness and finishing ability?
Zidane played a very similar position to Lampard and Gerrard for a lot of his career, he was an attack minded playmaker.
On FBRef Tellas interceptions, recoveries and tackles won were ahead of Benson, comparable to Zaroury (better on interceptions slightly, worse on tackles slightly, almost identical on ball recoveries). Sofascore has him ahead on tackles and interceptions per game, tied with Benson on possession won, marginally ahead of Zaroury.
Can't easily find free sprint or press stats. But for carries and duels/dribbles for every source Tella is the lowest on successful dribbles, carries, carry distance, carries into the final third, and ground and aerial duels won per 90, behind Benson on carries into the box, and worst for and dispossession per 90. He wins it more but he loses it more.
In my opinion we didn't need to shell out so much for Trafford either when we have other holes to fill, so I don't think that comparison matters.
Still not sure what's controversial about saying - Tellas good and I'd like to have him back at the right price, but he's not irreplaceable and I don't think he was our most important player so for the price touted I'd move on.