Manchester United turn to Jadon Sancho more than any other player when playing against established defensive units.
That’s according to data provided by @markrstats, who previously tweeted the following:
“Manchester United face low blocking less often than other big European clubs, but when they have to ‘break the bus’, Jadon Sancho is the key contributor”
The commentary was accompanied by a graph measuring the probability of a shot or ‘deep finish’ within three actions based on who receives the ball.
With those stats in hand, the data analyst concludes that the former Borussia Dortmund winger is by far the most effective player at United against deep defences.
Manchester United face low blocking less often than other big European clubs but when they have to ‘break the bus’ Jadon Sancho is the key contributor pic.twitter.com/lm6rOps8He
— markstats (@markrstats) September 26, 2022
@Markrstats defines a ‘deep completion’ as a successful pass within 20 meters of the opponent’s goal.
The graph also only considers ball receptions that occur after a team has completed ten or more passes in the opposing half, to ensure that the resulting measured actions focus on attacking-side play against low-blocking defenses.
Based on the above data, when Sancho received the ball after a 10+ passing sequence in the opposite half, he caused a shot or deep finish approximately 7.4% of the time since the start of the 2021 season /2022.
That’s comfortably taller than any of his teammates.
Fred ranks surprisingly high at around 6.9%, perhaps showing his good form in a more advanced position last season.
No other player in the United squad is above 6.5%, with Bruno Fernandes at a shockingly low 5.75%.
It is a testament to Sancho’s close control and composure in the final third that he has become the de facto creator when the Red Devils take on teams happy to fall behind.
He is an attacker who is comfortable playing through the eye of a needle, and as long as he continues to do a good job, the assists will follow naturally.
Sancho is already beginning to see the benefits in terms of goals, with three scored so far this season.
