Huddlestone or Mbia? Transfer Scouting Report.
Tue Aug 13, 2013 10:45 pm
Huddlestone or Mbia? Which Midfielder Should Cardiff Sign To Avoid The Drop? Transfer Scouting Report.
After securing tenacious midfielder Gary Medel from Sevilla in a club record deal, Cardiff and their manager Malky Mackay are continuing to assemble a squad capable of avoiding relegation this season.
The Welsh side have now strengthened with five signings this summer but continue to be linked with central midfielders, most notably Tottenham’s Tom Huddlestone and QPR’s Stephen Mbia according to the Daily Mail.
With Medel in the bag and other areas of the squad in need of improvement, it is unlikely Cardiff will sign both Mbia and Huddlestone.
So which one would give Mackay and Cardiff the best chance of Premier League survival next season?
While Huddlestone contributed to Spurs’ fifth-place finish last season, Mbia was powerless to stop his QPR side returning to the Championship after two years in the top-flight.
The England man managed 20 league appearances for Andre Villas-Boas’ side, 11 of which were starts. Mbia, on the other hand, made 29 appearances, all of which were starts.
Despite his side’s relegation, the former Marseille player posted a reasonable Squawka Performance Score of 512, the fourth-highest among QPR’s underachieving squad. This was noticeably better than Huddlestone, who only managed a score of 326.
The versatile Cameroonian, who played in central-defence and midfield for Harry Redknapp’s side, endured mixed form for the majority of the campaign, picking up nine Squawka Best Awards and nine Worst Awards. Perhaps the most telling being his three Worst Man of the Match gongs.
Huddlestone earned himself three positive and four negative awards, including one Man of the Match and two Top Man in Team. His unwanted awards were of a less serious nature than Mbia’s, with two Worst Man in Team and two Worst Defence honours collected.
The pair are difficult to split when it comes to pass accuracy, although former Derby star Huddlestone comes out on top with a very respectable average pass accuracy of 84% compared to Mbia’s 82%. The Spurs man’s average pass length (24m) also suggests that he has a better range than the Hoops midfielder (17m).
In terms of key passes, the Spurs man also holds a narrow advantage. He created 22 chances last season, four of which were converted into goals by his team-mates. Mbia managed three assists among his 20 chances created, a good return given he spent most of his time playing in the heart of defence.
But both players failed to find the net themselves last season, a disappointing statistic given Huddlestone’s love of long-range shooting and Mbia’s physical presence from set-pieces.
The ex-Rennes star is clearly a more accomplished defensive player, winning 56% of his duels and winning 80% of his tackles compared to Huddlestone’s 50% and 67% tackles won. However, the former Wolves loanee does marginally come out on top when it comes to aerial battles, his 53% success rate was just ahead of Mbia’s 48%.
With just a year separating them and some very similar stats from last season, picking one player as a preferred option for Cardiff’s inexperienced squad is a difficult task.
But, given his versatility, defensive-prowess and availability, Mbia makes the most sense as Mackay’s next summer signing.
He may not have had a great debut season with QPR but his athleticism, physical presence and energy would give the Bluebirds’ midfield a dimension they’ll need next term, something the injury-prone Huddlestone may fail to deliver.
http://squawka.com/news/2013/08/13/hudd ... 3081316913
After securing tenacious midfielder Gary Medel from Sevilla in a club record deal, Cardiff and their manager Malky Mackay are continuing to assemble a squad capable of avoiding relegation this season.
The Welsh side have now strengthened with five signings this summer but continue to be linked with central midfielders, most notably Tottenham’s Tom Huddlestone and QPR’s Stephen Mbia according to the Daily Mail.
With Medel in the bag and other areas of the squad in need of improvement, it is unlikely Cardiff will sign both Mbia and Huddlestone.
So which one would give Mackay and Cardiff the best chance of Premier League survival next season?
While Huddlestone contributed to Spurs’ fifth-place finish last season, Mbia was powerless to stop his QPR side returning to the Championship after two years in the top-flight.
The England man managed 20 league appearances for Andre Villas-Boas’ side, 11 of which were starts. Mbia, on the other hand, made 29 appearances, all of which were starts.
Despite his side’s relegation, the former Marseille player posted a reasonable Squawka Performance Score of 512, the fourth-highest among QPR’s underachieving squad. This was noticeably better than Huddlestone, who only managed a score of 326.
The versatile Cameroonian, who played in central-defence and midfield for Harry Redknapp’s side, endured mixed form for the majority of the campaign, picking up nine Squawka Best Awards and nine Worst Awards. Perhaps the most telling being his three Worst Man of the Match gongs.
Huddlestone earned himself three positive and four negative awards, including one Man of the Match and two Top Man in Team. His unwanted awards were of a less serious nature than Mbia’s, with two Worst Man in Team and two Worst Defence honours collected.
The pair are difficult to split when it comes to pass accuracy, although former Derby star Huddlestone comes out on top with a very respectable average pass accuracy of 84% compared to Mbia’s 82%. The Spurs man’s average pass length (24m) also suggests that he has a better range than the Hoops midfielder (17m).
In terms of key passes, the Spurs man also holds a narrow advantage. He created 22 chances last season, four of which were converted into goals by his team-mates. Mbia managed three assists among his 20 chances created, a good return given he spent most of his time playing in the heart of defence.
But both players failed to find the net themselves last season, a disappointing statistic given Huddlestone’s love of long-range shooting and Mbia’s physical presence from set-pieces.
The ex-Rennes star is clearly a more accomplished defensive player, winning 56% of his duels and winning 80% of his tackles compared to Huddlestone’s 50% and 67% tackles won. However, the former Wolves loanee does marginally come out on top when it comes to aerial battles, his 53% success rate was just ahead of Mbia’s 48%.
With just a year separating them and some very similar stats from last season, picking one player as a preferred option for Cardiff’s inexperienced squad is a difficult task.
But, given his versatility, defensive-prowess and availability, Mbia makes the most sense as Mackay’s next summer signing.
He may not have had a great debut season with QPR but his athleticism, physical presence and energy would give the Bluebirds’ midfield a dimension they’ll need next term, something the injury-prone Huddlestone may fail to deliver.
http://squawka.com/news/2013/08/13/hudd ... 3081316913
Re: Huddlestone or Mbia? Transfer Scouting Report.
Tue Aug 13, 2013 10:50 pm
Ah, already posted by TopCat CCFC. 