These days all sorts of stats are being flaunted about by opta and the likes, most impressive, some shocking and some irrelevant. However when comparing players its not a simple proposition to use them at will as they may not be compatible with players auguring their trade in different position or indeed in the same position within a different formation. The most common stats in contemporary football relate to chances created, pass completion rate and in terms of defense tackles and interceptions. However it must be taken into account that such stats hold differing weight across the spectrum of teams within the league ranging from those within the upper echelons of the football league who usually tend to deploy a more attacking formation wherein defenders often maraud forwards to aid in attack leaving a more field of play susceptible to counter attack hence leaving plenty of room to display their true defensive capabilities as opposed to the more compact yet effective defensive tactics employed by the underdogs who tend to defend as a unit relying primarily on a handful of attacking players to snatch that vital goal salvaging any hope of victory when facing the titans of their respective leagues eschewing a more attacking threat in favor of a more judicious approach geared towards sustaining their status within their respective leagues. Such teams are unlikely to display shell shocking stats but does that render their style of play ineffective? On a more attacking level they are unlikely to create a variety of chances and a miser pass completion rate. However it must be taken into account such teams resorting to posing a threat on set pieces or a more counter attacking style of play will possess striker entitled to the luxury of an opposition less congested than their counterparts enhancing their oppertunity to avail of any given chance amid less pressurizing circumstances ultimately achieving a more favorable conversion rate. Even when attempting to equate teams of comparable stature teams employ tactics suited to their respective personnel. Hence teams such as man city tend to deploy two striker at a given time in keeping with their wealth of options on this front as opposed to the more creative nature of teams such as arsenal who whilst lacking fire power up front do have players in their repertoire capable of retaining possession on a more consistent basis in order to probe, test and manipulate the opposition in hope of looking for that one significant pass capable of cutting through the opposition back line. In the case of the former the midfielders would generally tend to be over run by the latter as a consequence of their numerical and in all possibility technical superiority lending to a more modest pass completion rate and less possession. They would however hold more impetus when it comes to the final third of their attempt to help create goals aided by the relative depth of options they possess in terms of both the two strikers in question and fellow midfielders. In the case of the latter striker whilst by no means playing a peripheral role do tend to have less responsibility up until that final chance. However even in such cases the striker tends to be more involved in the general level of play entrusted with the dual task of linking up with their midfield and preferably finishing off the chance. In addition some teams tend to play with specialized defensive midfield whilst others such as arsenal tend to share the responsibility. None of this is to say by any stretch of the imagination stats hold no value but it must be taken into account the scenarios in question must be of a comparable nature and whilst i don't believe any stat provides the perfect comparison they do hold significant weight when comparing players plying their trade in the same position albeit in a different formation just not an exact comparison! Stats are facts ignoring the inter-dependency between players, the nature of the opposition, off the ball movement and the tactics employed by each team. In the final instance though the stat of prime importance is the score at the end of the game and more important than any stat at least in my opinion is the enjoyment derived from the performance! PS: Sorry about the long winded article but i cant sleep and am getting bored!
If you put some spaces between the paragraphs, I might read it. As it is, it just hurts my eyes . . .
Haha i was half asleep to be fair! I just like writing at times. I had my fill and finally went back to sleep. If anyone is genuinely intereted i can edit to paragraph it.
