Real Madrid’s summer signings kicked off with the capture of Borussia Dortmund playmaker Nuri Sahin in early May. Sahin’s performances last season have been heralded all over Europe and for the conservative sum of 10m Euros, Jose Mourinho looks to have a steal on his hands. So how will Sahin fit into the Madrid first XI? Will his displays be as impressive in Spain as they were in Germany? Here’s a look at some of the key factors:
Midfield Partner
Xabi Alonso will surely be the man to play alongside Sahin in defensive centre midfield and Alonso’s defensive stats are as impressive as his distribution; 3.2 Tackles and 2.8 Interceptions per game, combined with 1.62 Key Passes and an 85% Pass Accuracy saw the Spaniard pick up 6 Assists last term and perhaps set the standard for Mourinho’s “double pivot” requirements.
Alongside Alonso, new signing Sami Khedira failed to shine; just 1.9 Tackles and 2.1 Interceptions, with 0.88 Key Passes and 1 Assist is not in the least eye-catching. Lassana Diarra, the other alternative, fared better defensively (3.5 Tackles and 1.8 Interceptions) but like Khedira, lacked in creativity in comparison to Alonso, managing just 0.65 Key Passes per game.
Sahin, on the other hand, is more like Alonso; both destroyer and creator. His 3.8 Tackles and 2.2 Interceptions is superior to either Khedira or Diarra but, most importantly, his creativity is streets ahead; 3.47 Key Passes per game (while boosted by his set-piece duties) clearly shows Sahin’s eye for a pass and demonstrates the extra qualities Madrid’s midfield will possess with him on board.
Mourinhos’ Tactics
As shown, 4-2-3-1 was Madrid’s most familiar shape last season, with Jose Mourinho choosing the formation in 32 of the side’s 38 league matches. Sahin will have no trouble adjusting to the system, then, given 4-2-3-1 was also Dortmund’s system of choice. The only real question is whether Sahin plays on the left of the double pivot; he occupied that slot last season for Dortmund but Mourinho has tended to field Alonso in the same position, with either Khedira or Diarra to his right.
Real’s 8-1 home win over Almeria in the last game of the season, however, saw Mourinho field a 4-3-3 which allowed him to play Kaka, Alonso, Ozil, Ronaldo, Adebayor and Benzema in the starting XI and will perhaps give Jose food for thought in games against weaker sides, particularly at the Bernabeu.
Madrid v Dortmund Finishing
Madrid scored a fantastic 102 La Liga Goals last term, an average of 2.68 per game while Dortmund’s 67 Goals in 34 games was an average of 1.97. It’s an indication of the Spanish side’s superior finishing that even though Madrid averaged just 1 more Shot per game, 14 to Dortmund’s 13, they scored 0.71 more per match. Sahin picked up 8 Assists last term but even when set-pieces are inevitably taken away from him, his Key Passes, added to Madrid’s lethal front men, should see an increase in Assists.
A look at each side’s finishing shows that, of Dortmund’s most-used front four last season, young playmaker Mario Goetze averaged 1 Goal every 5.66 Shots, top scorer Lucas Barrios managed 1 Goal every 5.4 Shots, Kevin Großkreutz scored 1 every 5.52 Shots and Japanese star Shinji Kagawa was the most impressive, with 1 Goal every 4.05 Shots.
A comparison with Madrid’s most-used front four last season, shows just how more clinical the Spanish side were. Mezut Ozil, while scoring just 6 Goals, only had 0.8 Shots per game, meaning he scored 1 Goal every 4.8 Shots, only slightly worse than Ronaldo’s 1 per 4.75 Shots, despite the latter scoring 40 Goals. Karim Benzema was of a similar ratio, with 1 Goal per 4.62 Shots. Angel Di Maria is the weak link when it comes to converting chances; he averaged 1 Goal every 9.33 Shots, scoring 6 for the season. Throw in Gonzalo Higuain’s 1 per 4.08 and Kaka’s incredible 1 per 3.2 Shots, however, and Sahin should see more of the chances he creates ending in the back of the net this time round.
Madrid Left v Right
In terms of output, there’s a definite difference in both flanks. From the full-back position, Marcelo offers far much more threat going forward on the left than right-back Sergio Ramos. The Brazilian averages 0.88 Key Passes to Ramos’ 0.61 and makes 2.3 Successful Dribbles compared to just 0.3. It’s not as if Ramos isn’t attack-minded; he has scored 25 Goals for Real, with last season’s 3 his lowest ever total for the club. A better balance is perhaps required and regardless of whether Alonso or Sahin plays in the right of the double pivot, Ramos will clearly have a more cultured presence ahead of him in the centre, in comparison to Diarra or Khedira last term.
The same applies on the wings; Di Maria is equal to Ronaldo in many stats- he edges Key Passes 2 to 1.9, just loses out in Successful Dribbles (1.9 to Ronaldo’s 2.2) and made the same number of Assists, with 11. When it comes to goal threat, however, Ronaldo dominates; his 5.6 Shots per game to Di Maria’s 1.6 and 40 Goals to 6 a hugely substantial difference. Clearly, Di Maria doesn’t have the finishing ability of Ronaldo but with a more creative presence behind him playing quality Key Passes, Di Maria should increase his goals tally next season and better that poor goals return of 1 per 9.33 Shots.
