While it's true that Mason Mount didn't hit quite the same high notes in 2022-23, the same could be said of any Chelsea player. For Manchester United to now swoop in for one of the most highly rated midfielders on the planet at even a £60 million fee could be one of the signings of the summer. With that, we assess why Mason Mount is perfect for an Erik Ten Hag team, and why Mount's career could be set to progress from here.
The task of replacing Declan Rice is a near impossible task. While you could likely combine his traits in a trio of midfielders for that price, no one that West Ham United could convince to join the club will be able to make such a massive single-handed impact at the London Stadium. Nevertheless, we scoured through the data and footage of hundreds of players to find those most similar to Declan Rice, and those that could make up for some of what's now lost without his services. With that, here is our analysis on how West Ham United can replace Declan Rice.
To find someone who can both link-play and bang in the goals is a difficult task, but it's one that won't be all that difficult if they turn to Randal Kolo Muani of Eintracht Frankfurt. Here is why United should sign the Frankfurt man, and why Kolo Muani is turning the heads of all the European elites.
Rodri never needed to redeem himself, but Pep Guardiola likely did after leaving his prized defensive midfielder out of the Champions League final against Chelsea two seasons ago. The Spanish midfielder has been immaculate this campaign, helping to dictate much of City's stellar possession and defensive solidity. Easily the best defensive midfielder in the world at the moment, Rodri has been integral to City's success all season long at the heart of their midfield. It was a perfect ending to the fairytale for the Spaniard to cap off a wonderful season with that decisive Champions League final goal, but his performance was about so much more. Here is the final Game of Numbers for the European 2022-23 season.
Despite their torrid time this season, I disagree with many of the takes that Tottenham are in need of a complete rebuild and overhaul to change their fortunes around. That said, a few positions remain in need of severe upgrades, specifically at the back. So once more, in my search to fix Tottenham without European football, I'm searching for a goalkeeper, two centre-backs, and a left-back.
Crucially for his role as a 'Wing-Back', Pervis Estupiñán is one of the best crossers of the ball in the division. That has translated in over 3 crosses and 1.6 key passes per 90 in league play. It's the awareness of when to keep the ball on the grass or when to raise the ball in the air that comes as such an underrated skill, and one that often allows the Ecuadorian to set his teammates up for a real chance of scoring.
There is nothing that fascinates me more about tactical team construction than how managers change the job titles of certain players to achieve certain results. That may be to combat a strength of an opposition, to bring out a strength in their own team set-up, to bring the best out of a player at their disposal, or even simply to fill a hole. I created an entire series around this premise called 'Game of Numbers', analyzing the various roles that individual players take up to help their teams achieve success. With that, I highlight some of the best positional tweaks this campaign, detailing how managers were able to get the best out of each player.
Over the past few weeks, Jürgen Klopp's Liverpool have been gaining not only traction in the league, but scrutinized attention over some new principles of play. That "new" principle involves the use of Trent Alexander-Arnold where all of us always knew he could excel, in central areas. I wanted to throw my hat into the mix, partially because there's an argument to make that this is not all that new.
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