It was no surprise that Chelsea were looking for a new defender this summer, given the lack of options for Thomas Tuchel. As was the norm in Todd Boehly’s early days, they moved quickly to recruit.
The Stamford Bridge club have finalized a transfer for Napoli, the stalwart Kalidou Koulibaly, on a deal worth £34million.
Koulibaly has an excellent reputation and has been associated with other top clubs in England in the past, with Chelsea fans now wondering what he will bring.
Chelsea have signed Napoli defender Kalidou Koulibaly for £34m to bolster their backline
His stats from last season show Chelsea have built a formidable presence both on the ground and in the air – and perhaps they won’t when it comes to defensive reinforcements.
After Nathan Ake decided to stay with Manchester City, Chelsea are reportedly set to rekindle their interest in Sevilla star Jules Kunde.
It was essential for the Blues to recruit a handful of new faces from the back as Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen have already left on a free transfer.
Tuchel was left behind shortly after their departure, although his ranks will be reinforced soon enough.
The central defender played in Italy last season, and Sports post checked his stats
Cesar Azpilicueta, who will join Barcelona on a £7million transfer, has been told he will not be allowed to leave Stamford Bridge until reinforcements have been signed. If he were to leave, Chelsea would go into the new season with a very different defense.
Koulibaly, alongside seasoned veteran Thiago Silva, will undoubtedly be at the heart of this project. He was always present at Napoli last season when he was fit, and has far more experience than those who would like to match his position.
First, we’ll look at how his numbers compare to the club’s current options, which are Silva, Trevoh Chalobah and Malang Sarr. The last two players earned less playing time last year, so it’s worth bearing in mind that this will influence the findings.
In terms of appearances, Koulibaly made 34 in all competitions, less than Silva’s 48 but more than the 30 and 21 of Chalobah and Sarr respectively. Intriguingly, he also started each of these matches, underscoring his importance to the Serie A side.
MATCH IN CHELSEA
All club competitions 21/22
Koulibaly
Silva
chalobah
Sarr
apparitions
34
48
30
21
begins
34
41
24
16
minutes
3036
3980
2247
1519
Goals against
32
36
13
16
Minutes per goal conceded
94.9
110.6
172.8
94.9
clean sheets
12
18
12
6
tackles
53
46
52
26
Addressing success (%)
56.6
69.6
71.2
57.7
Won aerial duels
58
96
58
36
Air Success (%)
53
72
59
71
blocks
29
38
11
9
interceptions
33
68
39
30
clearances
106
131
83
40
Dribbled past by opponent
17
13
12
12
To suit
2088
3702
1868
1348
Pass Accuracy (%)
87
92.7
89.8
88.7
Statistics provided by Opta
Of the games he played in, Napoli conceded 32 goals, four fewer than the 36 Chelsea had delivered with Silva at their side. Again, the difference in games played comes into play, but the fact that Koulibaly let in less than a goal every game is remarkable.
Chalobah and Sarr gave up 13 and 16, perhaps due to their limited minutes.
For tackles, Koulibaly comes out on top with 53. Behind him are Chalobah at 52, Silva at 46 and Sarr at 26. The winner’s success rate stands at a respectable 56.6, but this dwarfs Silva’s 69.6 and Chalobah’s 71.2.
As shown above, the Blues newcomer is also strong in the air and is no stranger to throwing himself into blocks and interceptions. However, he has been beaten in both areas by Silva, whose numbers were excellent last season.
Another aspect that is essential to the style of play under Tuchel is certainty on the ball and sharp decision-making. This simply reverses when a player chooses a shorter option to build from the back, or instead decides to knock the field down.
Despite his advanced age, Thiago Silva has improved his future team-mate on several points
Koulibaly recorded 106 clearances last season, while Silva recorded 131. Before passing, the former made 2088, a figure well below the latter’s 3702. As a disclaimer, this stat is heavily dictated by how each of the teams uses the ball.
Finally, Koulibaly’s percentage for passing accuracy comes to 87, while Silva’s is 92.7. Chalobah and Sarr’s totals are 89.8 and 88.7, clearly showing that the defender ready to don the club’s famous jersey must remain calm.
Taken together for the first table, the results show Koulibaly is ready to equip himself well for the rigors of the Premier League, even if Silva often trumps him.
Handy, for more context, Sports post has also compared Koulibaly to the best of the rest; the standout defenders of the other Big Six clubs in the top division.
Ruben Dias is one of the Premier League’s best defenders and will face Koulibaly
We selected Virgil van Dijk and Joel Matip from Liverpool, Ruben Dias and Aymeric Laporte from Manchester City, Gabriel Magalhaes from Arsenal, Cristian Romero from Tottenham and Harry Maguire and Raphael Varane from Manchester United.
Again, the number of minutes played by each of the aforementioned names must be taken into account, with Van Dijk in particular always being present for his club last season.
This also skews the number of minutes per goal conceded, but there are still plenty of noteworthy findings. Koulibaly, as explained above, has an average of 94.9 minutes between goals, an average of more than one whole game, and scores highly in the table below.
He is better with Van Dijk’s 140 minutes, while Laporte (113), Matip (123.5) and Dias (99.7) also surpass his bet. However, Manchester City and Liverpool tend to attack more than defend, while Napoli typically came under more pressure last year.
KOULIBALY VS THE BEST OF THE BIG SIX
All club competitions 21/22
Koulibaly
Van Dijk
The door
matip
dias
Magalhaes
Maguire
Romero
Varane
apparitions
34
51
44
43
40
38
37
30
29
begins
34
51
43
42
37
37
35
29
26
minutes
3036
4620
3757
3706
3291
3265
3168
2552
2362
Goals against
32
33
33
30
33
39
50
33
29
Minutes per goal conceded
94.9
140
113.8
123.5
99.7
83.7
63.4
77.3
81.4
clean sheets
12
28
17
19
13
13
7
7
6
tackles
53
24
48
59
38
52
44
81
33
Addressing success (%)
56.6
58.3
52.1
72.9
57.9
61.5
63.6
59.3
63.6
Won aerial duels
58
185
69
140
61
57
94
61
74
Air Success (%)
53
78
63
71
56
58
72
63
76
blocks
29
17
12
17
20
27
31
24
13
interceptions
33
49
31
51
31
15
42
54
28
clearances
106
161
86
115
86
117
114
90
98
Dribbled past by opponent
17
5
8
13
10
11
12
14
13
To suit
2088
4024
3743
3095
2959
2124
2028
1847
1538
Pass Accuracy (%)
87
89.6
94.5
88.8
93
89.2
86.6
88
88.2
Statistics provided by Opta
In the clean sheet column, Koulibaly’s 12 is back in the middle of the road. Van Dijk has 28, while Matip at 19, Laporte at 17 and Dias at 13 put them in front of him. Chelsea’s new man, however, comfortably beats the remaining four contenders.
Koulibaly’s 53 tackles last season are the second highest on the table, behind the combative Matip’s 59. Again, this may be influenced by the way Napoli have set up their booth, but this is a feat that is sure to please Tuchel.
It’s worth pointing out, though, that Koulibaly’s pass rate, 56.6 percent, is the second lowest — with everyone except Laporte improving their mark last year.
For aerial duels won, while Koulibaly’s position is not something for his new manager to turn his nose at, his number is beaten by several of his top rivals. Van Dijk won 185 in the air and Matip finished with 140, with both numbers improving to 58.
Virgil van Dijk has the best figures of last year, but Koulibaly’s statistics are impressive
A scan along the blocks and intercept columns shows that Koulibaly has plenty to offer his new team in both areas. He is second for the first category and fourth for the second – again indicating that he has an all-round game in his arsenal.
One area that needs improvement is dribbling past by an opponent. That happened to Koulibaly 17 times last season, about once in every two games, and while that doesn’t sound bad, others in the Premier League have been more steadfast.
In comparison, Van Dijk was only dribbled past five times, with the second-highest amount, behind Koulibaly, coming from Romero’s 13. Maguire, much maligned by United supporters for his mobility, was tricked 12 times.
Finally, there are no major concerns in the passing department. As explained above, Koulibaly has shown that he is adept at possession, as is required in the modern era of top flight, and his numbers are nicely next to his peers.