Leeds

Leeds United: swap you a Rover for a Fiat?

Okay, I can hear the sharpening of barbed tongues from the mulling crowd. I can hear the clamour of the barbarity of the pitchfork crew. I can hear the welling anger of the angry mob, ready to descend on the comments box after reading this. However, all I ask is that they read with an open mind.

Since he arrived on an emergency loan at Elland Road, Liam Bridcutt has been a solid addition to the team in the ‘six role’ – a defensive-minded midfielder sitting in front of the centrebacks and providing a defensive screen in the newly-instigated 4-1-4-1 formation. So far this term, in his three game spell to date, Bridcutt has caught the eye with his solid display in front of the back four and has been instrumental in breaking up play and then distributing the ball to more advanced midfielders; put simply his footballing displays have brought others into the game.

Liam Bridcutt 2015/16 Championship returns (per typical 90 minutes returns)

  • 101 successful passes from 141 attempts (71.63% accuracy); 33.7 passes from 47 attempts
  • 1 shot assist passes; 0.33 shot assist passes
  • 0 goal assist
  • 2 successful dribbles from 2 attempts (100% success rate);
  • 9 possession losses, 3 possession losses
  • 13 successful tackles from 22 attempted tackles (59% success rate); 4.3 successful tackles from 7.3 attempts
  • 6 interceptions of opponent ball; 2 intercepts
  • 5 defensive blocks, 1.6 defensive blocks

Numbers are good at illustrating but bad at explaining, partial storytellers that they are. So, what story do these numbers tell?Well, they do show that Liam Bridcutt is solid in front of the Leeds United central defenders and provides a degree of protection to what Leeds fans have criticised as a suspect area of the team. However, should Liam Bridcutt’s displays continue to sparkle then Leeds United face the possibility of losing the defensive-minded midfielder either back to parent club or to other suitors, such as prior club Brighton who are reputed to be showing an interest in their ex-player. Whilst admitting that he is an admirer of Liam Bridcutt, what with Steve Evans saying that “I love the kid” and whilst Brighton do sit atop the Championship, Evans does think that the cachet that Leeds United carry is something that the Sunderland loanee thinks about. In regard to this, Evans says, “For every other statistic on the planet, he’d choose Leeds United. I’m still hoping that would be at the front of his mind. He’s certainly intimated to me that he wants to be around. I’ll listen to him and people here rather than listen to the television.”

However, it’s one other point that Evans makes in the Yorkshire Evening Post article by Phil Hay that, “I know where there’s another Bridcutt. I’m all right with that.”

It’s the next section that’s going to get the pitchfork gang marching on my comment boxes with their torches ablaze.

What if Steve Evans sees a player closer to home as the answer, rather than protracted loan talks trying to bring a player in on a short-term deal? What is Steve Evans is looking within the current squad, rather than without it? What if…we can’t live our footballing lives on what ifs; that’d be like surviving on a diet of fresh air.

What about Tommaso Bianchi. Yes I know he’s like Earl Grey to a preferred Yorkshire Tea for some Leeds fans, but what if he was the answer. Yes, he’s been injured, both last season when a season-ending knee injury cut short his campaign and that carried over into this season, but he is fully fit now, the Italian last playing the full 90 minutes for the Leeds United U21 in the 1-1 draw against Hull City U21.

Tommaso Bianchi 2014/15 Championship returns (per typical 90 minutes return)

  • 971 successful passes from 1199 attempts (81% accuracy); 45 passes from 55 attempts
  • 14 shot assist passes (1.5% passes end in teammate shots); 0.6 shot assist passes
  • 1 goal assist (throughball pass)
  • 5 successful dribbles from 9 attempted dribbles (55% success rate)
  • 41 possession losses; 1.9 possession losses
  • 83 successful tackles from 126 attempted tackles (66% success rate); 3.8 tackles from 5.1 attempts
  • 47 interceptions of opponent ball; 2.2 intercepts
  • 54 defensive blocks; 2.5 defensive blocks

So, what story do these numbers from last season tell us? What do they say about Tomasso Bianchi? Well, despite playing only 24 times last season, compared to the 37 of Lewis Cook (35% fewer games), Bianchi’s 925 successful short passes was only 10 behind Cook’s total for the season, placing him in 4th place for the total number of completed short passes for the 2014/15 season. This high volume passing (55 attempts per typical 90 minutes) is something that would benefit a Leeds United effort that has been overly reliant on passes from full backs of late.

I could go on, and on, an on…but I won’t. My point is, I think Tommaso Bianchi is under-rated and, in terms of last season, was played out of position during the 2014 era when the 4-4-2 Diamond formation ruled the roost. Bianchi is not a defensive midfielder, yet he combines an excellent tackling ability and passing volume comined with excellent accuracy. Bianchi is one I believe could well flourish under the tutelageof Steve Evans, a man who seems to like to build a positive ethos in his players.

Should Evans not be looking elsewhere for a defensive-minded player, he could do no worse than give Bianchi a go.

After all, Italian flair and panache goes a long way.

Leeds fans…now you can unleash those notched arrows and rain hell on me.

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