Leon v Ki - A statistical comparison

Swansea stalwart Leon Britton

With yesterday's blog looking at how Ki and Jonathan De Guzman fare when their stats are compared, it seems only fair (and a few people have asked me) to look at how Leon comes out when all is said and done. With Ki seemingly being asked to play like Leon, it should be very interesting to see how this pans out. I'll throw JDG's stats in at the end for good measure too, for ease of comparison. 

It's Leon, so let's start with passes. Famously Europe's most accurate passer last season, he's so far found himself usurped in the pass completion department by his lanky South Korean counterpart. Leon has completed 91% of his passes (1359/1493) compared to Ki's 92.5% (1438/1554), and the Korean again comes out on top when you look at key passes, playing 1 a game compared to Leon's 0.3. I think we'd all agree that from what we've seen of Ki this season, his game is naturally more expansive than how Leon has played for the last few years, so this is likely an unsurprising statistic to most. That Ki plays on average 55.5 passes a game compared to Leon's 53.3, however, may surprise some given that Leon is still regarded as the central cog around which the Swansea team rotates, and when you consider Ki plays 5.8 successful long passes a game compared to Leon's 1.8, it seems that when it comes to shifting the ball on quickly (and accurately) the Korean is at least a match for the Swans' legend.

£5million man Ki Sung-Yueng

A look at defence now. While Leon is hardly a tough-tackler, Ki has been at the receiving end of criticism from fans for, ahem, deciding not to tackle (I promised to keep the language on this website child friendly...), so it's interesting to see that, even if this is true, they make almost an identical amount of tackles per game (Leon with 1.3 and Ki with 1.2), however Leon does come out on top when you look at interceptions, averaging 2.1 per game, edging towards double the 1.2 Ki manages, and also makes more blocks - stopping 0.5 shots a game to Ki's 0.3. Interestingly, Leon get's dribbled past almost once a game (0.8) whereas Ki is clearly a tougher man to get past, averaging exactly half that, and Ki also makes more clearances, with 1.3 to Leon's 0.8, and given that the defensive role is new to Ki I'm surprised at the level of criticism he's received for supposed defensive failings.

The similarities continue; both midfielders attempt 0.4 dribbles a game, are dispossessed once a game (ish - Leon is 0.8 and Ki 0.9) and draw one foul a game, however Leon actually gives away possession twice as often - 0.8 times per game as opposed to Ki's 0.4. There is definitely an element of splitting hairs going on here; I get the feeling that if I was to compare, say, the central midfielders at another mid-table club (West Brom, Fulham etc) the statistics would vary a lot more from player to player, although I'd imagine on the whole the attacking statistics would be a little more impressive. Ki has two assists while Leon has none, and while the 1.4 shots per game attempted by the Korean isn't a huge amount it dwarfs the 0.3 attempted by the diminutive Londoner. That neither have managed a goal this term is no surprise.

I'm not alone in expecting Leon to pass regardless of the goalscoring opportunity that's presented itself, and slightly tenuously it gives me a chance to stick a quality video in.. I'll never forget the Playoff Semi-Final - Leon received the ball from a short corner, nipped past Marcus Tudgay and let fly with his left foot, leaving Lee Camp with no chance and putting the Swans 1-0 up. Epic stuff, that, but the excitement was definitely heightened because not one Swansea fan would have expected Leon to shoot from there - the little man himself was probably as surprised as anyone to see the ball end up in the top corner! The noise in that video is special...

As suggested in yesterday's blog, I don't really see these two players as having to compete for the same place, even though there's likely to be increased competition next year (press reports indicate we've agreed to sign Jose Canas, who operates as a defensive midfielder). With two defensive berths in the midfield against "bigger" teams (ie. Leon & Canas) and a dedicated attacking midfielder ahead of them (Ki or De Guzman) it would give us more balance than we've had of late (I still don't like Michu at attacking midfield as I feel it disrupts the normal rhythm). Against "lesser" teams, the three wingers formation should work a treat with a bit more practice/player recruitment, and I like the idea that we'll have two variations to our midfield, with interchangeable personnel. That kind of dynamism and fluidity could prove crucial when/if the fixtures pile up due to continued European involvement, and Laudrup has previously stated he'd like to have two players for every position.

There is, of course, the possibility that Canas is being lined up as a replacement for Leon. Let's not think about that eh...

Full stats for Leon Britton, Jonathan De Guzman & Ki Sung-Yueng