Enzo Fernandez made a big-money move from Benfica to Chelsea. After winning the award for Best Young Player in the FIFA World Cup 2022, Enzo was on the wishlist of a few clubs. Chelsea spent a heavy amount on the youngster and boosted their midfield. With N’Golo Kante out injured for the majority of the season, Chelsea needed a player who could stabilise their midfield and show some creativity as well. Since his arrival at the club, Enzo has been a prominent figure in the midfield for Graham Potter’s side. The 22-year-old has seven appearances to his name in the English Premier League. As Chelsea looks to finish high in European places, we look at some of the stats of Enzo, which show why Chelsea invested heavily in the midfielder.
A key figure in the midfield
Enzo Fernandez plays in the midfield for Chelsea. He has featured regularly since joining and has made seven appearances. The above viz shows the player’s heatmap from the last seven English Premier League matches. Enzo covers a lot of ground in the centre of Chelsea. They have runners down the flanks, and this allows Enzo to operate centrally.
The creativity from the centre
Chelsea are a side that doesn’t rely a lot on their midfielders to score goals. Enzo Fernandez is not a player who likes to make runs into the penalty box. Instead, he is a player who sits in the centre of the field and distributes the ball to a teammate who is in a position to receive it. Enzo averages 70.89 passes per 90 minutes and has a high accuracy rate of 87.8%. These include 12.01 passes to the final third (82.8% accuracy rate) and 3.1 passes to the opposition penalty box (41.7% accuracy rate). By looking at the above viz we can observe that most of the passes to the final third were attempted towards the right flank.
This high standard of passing has added two assists to the name of the midfielder. He has played some crucial passes into the opposition penalty box that have led to a shot. The progressive passes chart above shows that Enzo plays on the right side, and most of the progressions have been made on that particular side. Enzo’s shot assist map shows that the player likes to pass the ball just near the penalty spot. Joao Felix and Kai Havertz have converted two passes that were provided by Enzo Fernandez.
Guarding the back three
Chelsea are playing with a back three lately. The Blues have failed to keep their level of consistency, and that is the major reason behind their struggles. Enzo also has the duty of guarding his defence in the match. He contests 8.01 defensive duels, 1.16 aerial duels, and 2.84 loose ball duels per 90 minutes. The 22-year-old has won 61.3% of his defensive duels, 22.2% of his aerial duels, and 68.2% of his loose ball duels. He has also shown discipline by committing only two fouls. Enzo Fernandez is also good with his tackling. The Argentine has performed three sliding tackles, all of which have been successful.
Betting analysis
Enzo Fernandez is now becoming a key figure in Chelsea’s midfield. His inclusion in the team will slightly lower Chelsea’s odds against weaker opponents. As for the over/under lines, Enzo is unlikely to have much of an impact on the odds rate.
Enzo Fernandez will look to take Chelsea to a good finish towards the end of the season. He is getting used to the pace of English football. Chelsea will be hoping that their star signing pairs up with Kante as soon as possible and these two tear apart the opposition.
Visuals via TFA data viz engine
