Seit 2017 lesen wir das Spiel anhand von Daten.
Als Fußballanalytik noch eine Nische war, veröffentlichten wir bereits Analysen. Hier teilen unsere Data Scientists eigens entwickelte Metriken wie Gegenpressing Intensity und AERO, Ligavorschauen, Scouting-Berichte und die Validierungsstudien hinter XSEED: die Geschichte der Football Intelligence, erzählt, während sie entstand.
Wonderkids: Florian Wirtz
Florian Wirtz has all the credentials to become one of the top attacking midfielders in Europe, in our view. Technically gifted, Wirtz’s dribbling and vision are his main skills, while he is also very dynamic and covers a lot of ground during matches. Furthermore, various external factors lead us to believe that this 17-year-old wonderkid […]
Wonderkids: Eduardo Camavinga
Already on the shortlists of many of Europe’s top clubs, Eduardo Camavinga showcases uncommon maturity, confidence and composure, all qualities that he will surely develop further thanks to his strong attention to detail and work ethic. The next step in Camavinga’s on-pitch development is to complete the transition from defensive to box-to-box midfielder, which should […]
[ITA] – "La Juventus che vorrei" secondo la tesi di Andrea Pirlo
La Juventus è una delle squadre più interessanti in Europa in questa stagione. La ragione principale è l’atto di fede compiuto dalla dirigenza bianconera nel nominare il debuttante assoluto Andrea Pirlo come nuovo allenatore; una decisione che sembra urtare con l’approccio storico della Vecchia Signora. La rosa della squadra bianconera sembra essere abbastanza in linea […]
Juventus under coach Pirlo
Juventus will be one of the most interesting teams to watch in Europe this season. The main reason for our excitement is the leap of faith taken by the top management in naming rookie Andrea Pirlo as the new Head Coach, an appointment that seems to jar with the Old Lady’s historical approach. Juventus’s squad […]
The Growing Importance of Football Analytics
From the origins of data analytics in football to FC Liverpool’s dominance, we explore how stats and algorithms are changing the Beautiful Game.
AZ Alkmaar's Talent Factory
The quantity and quality of players that the AZ Academy is able to promote to the first team every year is outstanding. This is no coincidence, but is the result of a well thought-out long-term plan, structured over the past five years. In this in-depth analysis we look at what distinguishes AZ’s player development process. […]
Top heading players in European football
Headings require three key skills: a good timing, jumping reach and coordination. In the top 5 leagues, three forwards stand out for their heading skills: Giroud (Chelsea), Pavoletti (Cagliari) and Carrillo (Leganes). In the current season, the “king” of headers is Leonardo Pavoletti, who has already scored 9 headed goals. Mexico City, Sunday 21 June […]
Bend it like Beckham: the top free-kick takers in Europe
Who have been the best free-kick takers in Europe over the past five years? Lionel Messi? Cristiano Ronaldo? According to our research, neither of the two. After analysing all the free-kicks taken in the top 5 European leagues since 2014/15, we arrive to some counterintuitive conclusions. Andrew is attempting yet another dribble. The defender tackles him with energy. […]
The Vitruvian Goalie: A deep dive into the goalkeepers' stats
Goalkeepers save 69% of the opponents’ shots on target, on average. The save ratios differ greatly depending on whether the shots are taken inside or outside the box (60% and 85%, respectively). This suggests that, to be relevant, the save ratio needs to be considered along with the quality of the shots faced by the goalkeepers. To […]
Player salaries in the Italian Serie A (2018/19)
We analysed the contractual details of all the 548 players of the Italian Serie A (‘ISA’) and then aggregated the data by team, by role, by country and by age. The average salary per player, net of taxes, is €1m per year. The top-earner is Juventus’s Cristiano Ronaldo, €31m per year, costing more than the […]
The non-correlation between physical efforts and football performances
The stats of ‘Russia 2018’ confirmed the absence of any meaningful correlation between physical efforts and football performances. The overall outcome is in line with the available literature, although more clearly than widely perceived, in our view. Our main takeaway is the confirmation of the validity of ball-based training sessions, key to master football. By the way, […]
Ball possession in European football (part 3)
Final part of our trilogy of posts dedicated to ball possession in European football. We look into the recurring build-up patterns of four top European teams: Barcelona, Man City, Napoli and Bayern Munich. Third part of a trilogy The FIRST PART OF THE TRILOGY (LINK) was an introduction to ball possession. How it is calculated and […]
