And how the two can help solve some of Arsenal’s most pressing issues By Max Taylor and Jon Ollington Arsenal and Mikel Arteta’s start to 2021/22 has been, to put it kindly, difficult. Three consecutive losses to start the Premier League season has piled the pressure on the Spaniard to quickly turn results around. ManyContinue reading “Emile Smith Rowe and Martin Odegaard: Contrasting no. 10s, Complementary Teammates”
Author Archives: Max Taylor
Patson Daka – Player Profile
Dominic Wells (@DominicWells_SJ) provides the lowdown on Leicester’s new center forward: In his only season with RB Salzburg (2019/20), Erling Haaland averaged a goal every 61.25 minutes in the Austrian Bundesliga. The man who replaced him, Patson Daka, performed similarly (albeit at a slightly lower rate), by scoring a goal every 72.29 minutes in 2020/21.Continue reading “Patson Daka – Player Profile”
Leicester’s Search for a New Striker: Four Possible Options, Using Data and Video Scouting
By Dominic Wells, Max Taylor, Brice Koval, and Phil Stengel There’s no player that encapsulates Leicester City’s 5000/1 Premier League title quite like Jamie Vardy. He battled adversity in the early stages of his career – juggling working a full-time job with his passion for football, before Fleetwood Town offered him a contract that could blendContinue reading “Leicester’s Search for a New Striker: Four Possible Options, Using Data and Video Scouting”
Ones to Watch at Euro 2020: Federico Chiesa
This summer, Top Bins Talk is partnering with FIVEYARDS for their Euro 2020 game. To enter, visit their site here – where you will see their list of Golden 50 – before picking 5 players who you think will increase in value the most over the tournament. You can then compete in the leaderboard toContinue reading “Ones to Watch at Euro 2020: Federico Chiesa”
Forward-Thinking From the Middle: Four young midfielders that emphasize the importance of ball progression
Building moves from deeper areas, zipping passes between the lines, driving through gaps and breaking the press, feeding runs into space, springing counter attacks, carrying into the attacking third — progressing the ball is an extremely important aspect of football. After all, the ultimate aim of the game is to move the ball closer towardsContinue reading “Forward-Thinking From the Middle: Four young midfielders that emphasize the importance of ball progression”
The Ever-Evolving No. 10 Position: Four Premier League players redefining our understanding of the role
The Playmaker. The Trequartista. The Enganche. The Creator. The Number 10. It’s a position as elusive as those that play it. A role that has birthed some of the greatest footballers in history. An area on the pitch so vital, so involved, and often where the magic happens: the slide-rule pass, the fancy flick, theContinue reading “The Ever-Evolving No. 10 Position: Four Premier League players redefining our understanding of the role”
Bukayo Saka belongs at RW – but the search for his best position has proven exactly why he’s so special
It’s hard to believe that it’s been less than 18 months since Bukayo Saka scored his first Arsenal goal: a lovely left-footed strike in the Europa League group stage vs. Frankfurt was his 2nd of three goal involvements on the night, with one first-half assist before a slide-rule pass to Pierre-Emerick Aubemeyang in the closingContinue reading “Bukayo Saka belongs at RW – but the search for his best position has proven exactly why he’s so special”
Finding Arsenal’s Next Number Nine
Things can change very quickly in football. On Christmas day, Arsenal sat in 15th place, on 14 points, 14 games into the season; they had just crashed out of the Carabao Cup, recorded their 7th winless Premier League game in a row, and question marks surrounding Arteta’s future began to surface. Fast forward a monthContinue reading “Finding Arsenal’s Next Number Nine”
A Big 2021 Ahead: Eight Players We Believe Will Explode This Year
Think back to the beginning of 2020. Fans were in stadiums, Erling Haaland hadn’t yet played a game at Dortmund, Bruno Fernandes was still in Portugal, Liverpool were completely running away with the Premier League, and you had no idea Tariq Lamptey was THIS good. A lot can change in a year, especially in football.Continue reading “A Big 2021 Ahead: Eight Players We Believe Will Explode This Year”
Silas Wamangituka: Stuttgart’s Congolese Star
VfB Stuttgart are quickly developing a reputation as one of the most promising sides in Europe. Under the leadership of technical director Sven Mislintat, the German club have a host of exciting young prospects, and 21-year-old Silas Wamangituka may be the best of the lot. Signed from Paris FC for €8m in 2019, Silas helpedContinue reading “Silas Wamangituka: Stuttgart’s Congolese Star”
