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Luke Shaw
Player Analysis | A THREAD
Player Analysis | A THREAD
In the summer of 2014, @ManUtd signed a 19-year old Luke Shaw from Southampton with a view to replacing Patrice Evra at the LB position in the long run. Shaw had enjoyed a couple of great seasons with Southampton after they returned to the Premier League before joining the Reds.
Since then, Shaw has never consistently scaled the heights his predecessors at the same position such as Evra and Gabriel Heinze scaled. Multiple injuries meant Shaw has played above 2000 minutes in the Premier League for only one season since joining United.
This season, however, it seems Shaw has unlocked a new level in his game. In this thread, we will analyze Shaw’s stats to understand what he is doing differently in this season.
Luke Shaw’s @smarterscout analysis for the 2020/21 season till now shows a very high rating for ground duels ability followed by his dribbling ability and attacking output.
In the 19/20 season, he had an attacking opt of 65. This opt has increased to 81 this season. A huge reason behind this is his dribbling rating which has improved from 70 to 86, which has reduced his retention ability considerably but has increased his goal involvement by 16%.
Shaw’s dribbling improvement is further backed by the data gathered by @fbref in association with @StatsBomb. In the 2019/20 season, Shaw attempted 33 dribbles with a success rate of 72% in 1733 minutes which equals an average of 1.7 dribble attempts per 90 minutes. (1/2)
This season, Shaw has attempted 22 dribbles in 1070 playing minutes, thus making 1.84 dribble attempts per 90 minutes, although his success rate has taken a slight hit to 68%. (2/2)
Shaw also ranks among the top progressive pass makers among defenders in the Premier League. Although he is significantly behind the number setter Andrew Robertson of Liverpool, Shaw is amongst the middle group had made 66 progressive passes.
Another improvement in Shaw’s game that has increased his attacking output is his involvement in more goals and shots. Shaw is now creating 0.34 goal actions per 90 minutes compared to a very low 0.05 last season and 2.94 shot actions per 90 minutes compared to 2.18 last season.
This improvement has meant Shaw is now amongst the elite full backs of the Premier League in both these metrics. He has been better than the likes of Ben Chilwell, Kieran Tierney, and even Trent Alexander-Arnold who is having a poor season till now compared to his last now.
On the defensive side, his successful pressure percentage has gone up from 28.5% to 41.6%. Unlike previous seasons where he applied most of his pressures in the defensive third, he is now applying more pressures in the midfield third, which maturity in his playing style.
Shaw’s performances on the field has been one of the biggest reasons behind Manchester United’s incredible rise in the Premier League. His defensive numbers had always been great but it was his numbers going forward which significantly affected his team.
On top of that, Shaw has had a history of injuries which has always meant he had to take two steps back for one step forward. If Shaw can keep himself injury-free, he can prove to be a significant factor towards United’s first title push in almost a decade.
End of the thread.
