Emre Can vs Naby Keita – A Statistical Comparison
Jurgen Klopp has been a busy man since the end of the previous season as he helped his side to a place in the Champions League next season and is now looking to improve the first team quality. He is desperate for a midfield enforcer, who can add mettle to the squad at Anfield and one player constantly linked with a move to the club is RB Leipzig sensation, Naby Keita.
The 22-year old has reportedly agreed on terms of a deal with Liverpool, who are now negotiating the fee for the midfielder. He is expected to partner Liverpool skipper Jordan Henderson in the midfield next season but will have to fight for his place with German star Emre Can at Anfield.
The 23-year old found some decent form late last season and it might provide Klopp with a conundrum later in the season. But how do Can and Keita compare? Here is a statistical comparison of the Leipzig man with Emre Can’s figures in England.
Keita is slightly more attacking than Can and his 8 goals and 8 assists last season are a testament to it. Can finished with just 5 goals and 2 assists for Liverpool. With a passing accuracy of 82%, Can is slightly better than Keita, who had an accuracy of 81%, but the Leipzig man was more effective in almost every area.
With a shot accuracy of 44% and a successful take-on rate of 65.81%, Keita managed to thread 1.10 key passes per game and created 1.32 chances per game all season in the Bundesliga. Can, on the other hand, had a shot accuracy of just 37% and a successful take-on rate of just 56.76%. He threaded 0.97 key passes per game and created just 1.03 chances per game last season at Anfield.
Keita and Can are hard working players but the German star is slightly more prone to errors, winning just 1.62 tackles a game. Keita was far superior, winning 1.77 tackles per game. The Guinea international made 2.65 interceptions, 0.23 blocks and 1.10 clearances per game, and these attributes, added to his attacking abilities, is what that has attracted Klopp in the first place.
His competition, Emre Can, made just 0.91 interceptions and 1.03 blocks, making him a small liability at Anfield. However, Can won 52.21% of his aerial duels, making Ketia’s frailty in the air all the more glaring. Can has also made 1.72 clearances per game, making him more effective at the back.
At around £70m, Keita is an expensive buy, but it is clear from these numbers that he is the right man to improve Liverpool’s midfield next season.
Stat Credit: Squawka.com
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