- Aug 31, 2012
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I agree with all of this except the part of attacking stats. They are just as dependent on tactics etc as defensive stats. It is easier to create a chance (make a key pass) in a team playing open attacking football against teams that don't feel the need to "park the bus" than it is to do the same in AVB's rigid style (for example). Also, passing a ball 2 yards sideways to someone like Townsend who shoots and misses from 30 yards out would count as a chance created, just as dribbling past 5 players and playing a perfectly weighted pass giving someone an open net that they somehow miss would.Don't see much point in this statistical debate to be honest. I put much more stock in attacking statistics than I do defensive statistics. Goals, assists, key passes etc. are easily quantifiable and a decent measure of individual quality. Defensive stats IMO are more heavily determined by tactical considerations.
What you won't see on Opta is that for half the season Danny Rose was played behind Eriksen with no DM giving him cover and as a result his side was targeted by opposing managers, or that Davies played in a possession-oriented system and was probably called on to defend less than an average LB might be.
I'm not saying that stats should be disregarded entirely, just that IMO they are far less important when evaluating defenders than are physical, technical, and mental attributes. I'll readily admit to being underwhelmed by the prospect of Davies but if Poch has identified him as his top target who am I to really disagree.