FINDING A NEW DEFENSIVE MIDFIELDER - DATA

We have used data to identify three possible recruitments for Ajax this summer. There are a few rules to make sure that we have the optimal pool of players.

- Age: 24-32
- Top 5 leagues
- Market value < €20M
- Transfermarkt pos. = DM

Let us describe first what type of player Ajax should be looking at for this position. Ajax need a ball-winning defensive midfielder with decent passing ability. In order to create the optimal dataset, we have given some categories a multiplier.

THERE ARE 10 CATEGORIES:
-Successful defensive actions and interceptions
-Ground duels (won in %)
-Aerial duels (won in %)
-Progressive passes and runs
-Passes on opposition half/accuracy

SUCCESSFUL DEFENSIVE ACTIONS & INTERCEPTIONS

The problem of last season at Ajax was that we did not defend well in transition and we definitely need a DM who is smart and wins a lot of defensive duels.

GROUND DUELS P/90 & GROUND DUELS WON

Like we have mentioned above, it is important that our new DM is able to win ground duels and be able to recover possession, especially in transition.

AERIAL DUELS P/90 & AERIAL DUELS WON

Less important than successful defensive actions and interceptions, but like ground duels, this still is something that a player needs to be capable of.

PROGRESSIVE PASSES & PROGRESSIVE RUNS

The new Ajax DM does not need to be the creative player that creates a lot of chances, but he needs to be able to pick out the right pass.

PASSING ACCURACY ON OPPOSITION HALF

As we’ve mentioned above, the new Ajax DM needs to be very good defensively, but also able to pick out the right pass and he needs to be not slowing the build-up down.

Moving on to the scores. First, we need to do is to assess what the most important categories are and decide how we are going to score the 10 categories. Also, we need to add multipliers to the most important categories to create the most representative scores as possible.

THE SCORES:
- scoring under average = 0
- scoring slightly above average = 1
- scoring in-between slightly above and significantly above average = 2
- scoring significantly above average = 3

MULTIPLIERS
- Progressive passes x3
- Succ. def. actions x2
- Interceptions x1,5
- Progressive runs x1,5
- Ground duels won x1
- Aerial duels won x1
- Passes on opposition half x1
- Passing accuracy on opposition half x1
- Number of ground duels
- Number of aerial duels

SCORE SHEET

Now, we need to move on to the most important part: deciding which players Ajax can afford and are worth scouting on video. For example, Javi Martinez would have been a great fit for Ajax based on data, but Ajax can't afford him. Below you can find three affordable options.

DAVID LOPÉZ – 30 YEARS OLD – ESPANYOL - SPAIN

The first player that stood out is David Lopez. He has tons of experience, playing 170 matches for Espanyol and 79 matches for Napoli. However, it is not certain that Ajax would buy a 30-year-old Spaniard.

ELLYES SKHIRI – 24 YEARS OLD – FC KÖLN – TUNISIA

The second player that stood out is the 24-year-old Ellyes Skhiri. The Tunisian already played 146 matches on the highest level (Montpellier and Köln) and following the data he has the qualities to be a ball-winning midfielder.

RUBÉN PÉREZ – 30 YEARS OLD – LEGANES – SPAIN

The third and last player that we are going to watch on video is Rubén Pérez. The 30-year-old defensive midfielder would bring a lot of experience to Amsterdam as well, having played 252 matches in LaLiga already.

To conclude, we are going to watch these three players on video and come back with some scout reports shortly. We have not forgotten about the left-backs by the way, these are coming in the next few weeks as well. This is the end of the thread. Retweets and likes are appreciated.