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Everything you need to know about West Ham’s new forward Sebastian Haller, from the perspective of an Eintracht Frankfurt fan [ #FPL THREAD]
![Everything you need to know about West Ham’s new forward Sebastian Haller, from the perspective of an Eintracht Frankfurt fan [ #FPL THREAD]](https://pbs.twimg.com/media/D_n54fzVAAAPGRb.jpg "Everything you need to know about West Ham’s new forward Sebastian Haller, from the perspective of an Eintracht Frankfurt fan [ #FPL THREAD]")
I've seen a lot of speculation about Haller and his potential as a #FPL asset. Most of this is based on his stats, not an eyewitness to his game. As an Eintracht fan, I've watched every minute of him over the last two seasons. I hope this provides some additional insight.
18’/19’ Stats Starts
: 23Subs
: 6Minutes
: 2181Goals
: 15Assists
: 9Penalties
: 3/3
18’/19’ Stats vs. Top 6 Games
: 10Goals
: 2Assists
: 2
18’/19’ Stats vs. Bottom 11 Games
: 19Goals
: 13Assists
: 7
Playing Style Haller is an all-around right-footed forward. He can hold-up, poach, and link-up well with his midfielders. He flourishes in a pacey counter-attack system. Known for muscling his way past defenders on the break.
Playing Style (cont.) Haller's game is dependent on attack-minded wingers and midfielders. He played with a small army of them at Eintracht (Jovic, Rebic, Kostic, et al.). When he's left alone up top, he tends to disappear.
Playing Style (cont.) Luka Jovic was the key to unlocking Haller's potential. Jovic played the Messi role for Eintracht, pulling the defenders out of position and opening up space for his teammates. Haller was often the first man defenders would allow to go unmarked.
Playing Style (cont.) Haller loves to receive crosses, particularly from the left wing. Eintracht's unsung hero Filip Kostic delivered an arsenal of crosses to the box, creating many of Haller's goal opportunities.
Playing Style (cont.) Eintracht underwent a massive transformation in 18'/19', shifting toward a fast-paced, all-out, counter-attack offense. Haller flourished under this system, but struggled under the previous manager's slower defensive-minded tactics.
Playing Style (cont.) Haller proved in 17'/18' that he is not a forward who is capable of carrying the team on his back and creating his own chances. He needs better players around him to distract the defense, as he did in 18'/19'.
Playing Style (cont.) When I say Haller is right-footed, I mean he is VERY right-footed. He can be easy to shutdown when this weakness is exposed. He becomes very average when he doesn't have the support from his wingers and midfielders to distract the defense.
Playing Style (cont.) Haller is strong, but he doesn't often use this strength to his advantage in the box. With his size and strength you would expect him to be a bigger set-piece threat in the box than he is.
Playing Style (cont.) Haller is an excellent penalty taker. While only given 3 opportunities last season, he successfully converted them all. He has successfully converted 23 of his 24 career penalties. I expect him to be West Ham's penalty taker when on the pitch.
Playing Style (cont.) Haller is excellent in his link-up play with his other attackers. He has quite a bit of skill and flair, finding passing lanes that most other forwards would not. He is also confidently patient, rarely panicking when under pressure.
Similar to - Olivier Giroud: Haller resembles Grioud's link-up play and movement
- Mark Arnautovic: Haller is more reliant on his teammates than Arnie, but resembles him in almost every dimension of the game.
April 2019 Injury Haller suffered a bad abdominal strain that kept him out for 35 days. He has since made only two sub appearances, scoring a goal in a 5-1 loss to Bayern and blanking in a 0-2 loss to Mainz 05. Still remains to be seen how he is recovering.
Optimistic take Haller will be paired with a similar squad. Anderson, Lanzini and maybe even Chicharito could be key to replicating Haller's form with Eintracht. Haller is also likely to take penalties when on the pitch.
Pessimistic take Haller flourished when playing against weak defenses (essentially the entire Eredivisie and most of the Bundesliga). He disappeared against strong defenses. I'm not sure he has what it takes to play in the Premier League.
Predictions Price: £6.5m
Goals: 11
Assists: 5
Price < £6.5m = Buy!
£6.5m-£7.0m = Wait & See!
> £7.0m = Don’t Buy!
Summary: Haller is a wait-and-see for me. While he was fantastic at Eintracht last season, I'm very worried about how he will play against Premier League defenses. Still, he has a decent run of fixtures in the first part of the season. Could be worth a punt.
