Liverpool are out there for one more midfielder and up to date studies have linked them with Crystal Palace‘s Cheick Doucouré.
The Athletic has been a kind of making that hyperlink in latest weeks, so the participant may quickly be heading to Anfield – if the Reds get their means, after all.
However who’s Doucouré, and extra importantly, simply how good is he? Soccer FanCast has taken a glance into the info for all the things it’s good to know.
What’s Cheick Doucouré’s background?
Doucouré is a Malian participant who spent the early a part of his profession with RC Lens. He began his skilled profession there in 2018, with the membership sitting in Ligue 2.
Two seasons at that stage noticed them promoted, although, and Doucouré continued to impress in France’s high flight. These performances earned him a transfer to Crystal Palace final summer time in a deal price as much as £26m.
The place does Cheick Doucouré play?
Doucouré is a defensive midfielder, with WhoScored’s knowledge putting him in both deep midfield or a extra conventional centre-midfield function. Regardless of the place he’s, the Malian is all about successful the ball again and defending his again 4.
That will be the first motive Liverpool signal him if they will discover a take care of Palace.
What’s Cheick Doucouré’s type of play?
Doucouré is a defence-first participant. He averages a little bit over one shot per 90 minutes, says FBref knowledge, whereas he is hardly ever concerned in build-up play. Once more, the info exhibits this – the 23-year-old is immediately concerned in creating below two pictures per 90. That is very, very low.
His passing maybe explains that greatest. Doucouré solely handed it into the penalty space 11 occasions final season, whereas he averaged below 5 progressive passes – that are ahead passes of a minimum of 10 yards – per 90.
It will not be a shock to study that he does not dribble usually, both – he solely tried to dribble previous somebody 21 occasions final time period.
What you get, then, is a participant who focuses virtually completely on stopping the opposition.
How good is Cheick Doucouré?
So making an allowance for what Doucouré needs to do, it is easy to see why Liverpool have an interest. His standout stat is in interceptions, the place the participant averages 1.8 per 90 – that is within the high 3% of midfielders throughout Europe’s high 5 leagues.
And it is defensive stats throughout the board that additionally stand out right here. Doucouré is inside the high 15% of midfielders for tackles within the last third and the proportion of dribblers tackled, in addition to in mixed tackles and interceptions.
General tackles received are additionally a spotlight, the place he locations within the high 13%, as does his capacity to recuperate free balls, which ranks among the many high 25%. It isn’t usually you discover a participant able to doing all of this to a excessive stage.
It is price mentioning that Doucouré is in keeping with the ball, too. Whereas he hardly ever tries to take gamers on, he is very profitable at it when he does – solely 4% of midfielders are extra profitable.
He is dependable on the ball, averaging below one mis-control per 90 (putting within the 74th percentile) and is within the 83rd percentile for touches within the defensive third.
All in all, Doucouré is an extremely constant participant – and one with a really vivid future.
How outdated is Cheick Doucouré and what’s his potential?
Doucouré remains to be solely 23 and all of those spectacular stats got here in his debut Premier League season. Not solely that, however Palace weren’t particularly constant final day out, even altering their supervisor midway by.
As a part of a extra constant aspect – and with further Premier League expertise below his belt – there’s each motive to imagine that Doucouré can enhance rather a lot, even subsequent season – whether or not that is at Selhurst Park or Anfield.
What’s Cheick Doucouré’s harm file?
This can be a large concern for Liverpool followers, after all. The Reds have had some wonderful midfielders in recent times, although just about all of them have battled critical accidents – or just needed to take care of a lit of time within the remedy room.
Doucouré is definitely fairly distinctive in that regard. Transfermarkt has him down as struggling only one notable harm in his complete profession to this point – a muscle drawback again in early 2021 – and that solely noticed him miss one sport.
There have been some delicate ‘health’ points in the beginning of the 2019/20 season, however that is your lot.
Who would Doucouré substitute at Liverpool?
As per The Athletic’s article on the Reds’ curiosity, Doucouré would basically substitute Fabinho within the squad.
The Brazilian is predicted to depart for Saudi Arabia in a £40m deal to Al-Ittihad, with the midfielder present process a medical earlier this week and being neglected of the membership’s pre-season journey to Singapore.
Fabinho is basically the one out-and-out defensive midfielder in Jurgen Klopp’s squad. Doucouré is a pure substitute, then, and the Reds would arguably do very nicely to search out somebody higher suited to the job.
How would Jurgen Klopp use Cheick Doucouré?
This one’s fairly fascinating as change seems to be on the horizon at Liverpool. Jurgen Klopp has sometimes used a really versatile midfield, choosing multi-faceted gamers within the centre of the park.
Certainly, the acquisitions of Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister have already been famous signings of that ilk.
Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum have been the very best examples of that within the Reds’ Champions League and Premier League-winning aspect. Each gamers could possibly be strong defenders, whereas each have been comfy of their possession video games, too. And, after all, they’d the vitality to press excessive and play at tempo.
However Liverpool have moved to rebuild their midfield this season, bringing in Szoboszlai and Mac Allister because the likes of Henderson, James Milner and Naby Keita all departed.
The brand new Reds pair are far more attacking than former Reds comparable to Henderson or Wijanldum, suggesting Klopp needs to be extra proactive and inventive together with his midfield.
Such a gameplan would require a protecting participant in defender to sit down behind them. That, actually, can be Doucouré’s function – he’d possible be requested to sit down deep and canopy for 2 gamers who wish to be on the entrance foot – notably when taking the stats into consideration.
Certainly, he seems completely suited to just do that.
How does Doucouré examine to Moisés Caicedo?
Doucouré is not the one younger, energetic defensive midfielder to be linked with golf equipment this summer time. Moisés Caicedo can also be supposedly wished and has been linked with Liverpool previously.
A glance into the info exhibits a mixture of similarities and massive variations. The standout of the latter is that Caicedo is simply much more achieved on the ball.
As per FBref, he averages over 20 extra touches per 90 minutes, and never solely does he try over 24 extra passes however he completes them at a better share.
Nevertheless it’s the truth that they’re so comparable defensively is probably why Liverpool will imagine they’re discovering a gem with Doucouré. The Malian wins extra interceptions than Caicedo, whereas his tackling is notably higher, too.
The Brighton man does make extra tackles general, however importantly, Doucouré wins possession on extra events. He additionally clears the ball twice as usually as Caicedo, whereas additionally committing fewer errors.
It is simple to see why there’s a lot hype round Caicedo as his stats, general, seem extra spectacular – and he is nonetheless simply 20.
However should you’re after an out-and-out defensive midfielder as Liverpool are, there’s an excellent case to be made for Doucouré – on the subject of the info, a minimum of.
What are Cheick Doucouré’s wages?
Capology has Doucouré down as incomes round £60k per week – however we think about that wage would climb fairly a bit if he have been to hitch Liverpool.
For comparability, that is the identical determine Adrían earns at Anfield, once more per Capology, and solely six gamers earn lower than that on the crimson half of Merseyside. Szoboszlai reportedly earns twice that and it’s extremely potential that Doucouré would demand a pay packet of an analogous stage.
What’s Cheick Doucouré’s asking value?
BBC reporter Alex Howell understands that Crystal Palace would need round £70m as a way to promote Doucouré this summer time. That is a giant enhance on the £26m they dealt for only a 12 months in the past.
However of their defence, Liverpool apparently see that as a good value. It will now come down as to if the Reds can really pay it, and whether or not Doucouré is the participant they finally determine to signal.
Who else may Liverpool signal this summer time?
Earlier than the provide for Fabinho, Liverpool have been linked fairly closely with Southampton’s Romeo Lavia. The Reds are at present regarded as eager on transferring shortly for the Belgian amid potential competitors rising from rivals Chelsea.
There has additionally been discuss of Khephren Thuram at OGC Good, per Sky Sports activities, even when hyperlinks to him have died down a little bit in latest weeks. Melissa Reddy has additionally beforehand named Sofyan Amrabat, Ryan Gravenberch and Kalvin Phillips as ‘mooted’ Fabinho successors.
In different phrases, there are alternatives galore proper now and it is not fully clear who Liverpool may transfer for.
Do Liverpool need another signings?
The Reds went into this summer time needing to reinvest of their midfield. They’ve carried out simply that, with virtually definitely others to return.
However there have been tentative hyperlinks to centre-backs, too. Joe Gomez’s future is not too clear, whereas Joel Matip’s contract expires subsequent summer time. A brand new addition there could also be shocking if nobody have been to depart nevertheless it’s one to maintain a watch out for.
Attacking choices appear set for now, even with Roberto Firmino departing. Although, Saudi Arabian curiosity in Luis Díaz may show problematic in the event that they have been to show his head in any respect. Once more, that is one to be careful for because the switch window thunders on.