Being a football nerd that I am, I decided to watch two games by Schalke, where Hojbjerg was playing, to check him and other Schalke players out. I chose games against Gladbach and Bayer from this Spring – 2 other teams with plenty of talented players who are or could be our potential targets. Here are my impressions on some players I saw in these two games:
Matip – his playing style is the anti-Sakho. He never overcomplicates things, doesn't try to win every battle decisively, being satisfied with simply containing the opposition and he makes all decisions quickly and without fuss – his attitude is very calm and professional, he seems to play with his head more than emotion. He seems more like a player who will give you 6.5-7/10 performance in every game rather than 8 in one game and 5 in the other. He made a couple of positional mistakes in both games and was generally solid rather than dominant – however he was pretty much dominant in the air and took charge on almost every incoming cross which was good to see. He also has good feet and is quite capable of carrying the ball forward and gliding past players. I think with the right partner he can form a very good combination; I'd like to see him paired with a defender of equal talent and matching qualities – he doesn't quite have this at Schalke, where he's clearly #1 and always has to direct his younger partners.
Sane – last time I saw a complete game with him was in the Fall, also against Bayer, he had an uncharacteristically poor game that night and I think I commented that his defensive contribution was lacking. Well, judging from these two games, he seems to have matured quite a bit – he was using his speed and strength in defense as well as attack and he either created or scored all 4 goals Schalke managed in those games. Very sharp mind and awareness. He has a strong frame in addition to the speed and shields the ball very well (kind of like Sterling). The only question for me is whether he can learn to cut inside near the edge of the area and shoot in the far corner consistently, like Ronaldo – if he does, he'll be world-class for sure, if not he'll just be a dangerous speedy winger. Overall, a great prospect.
Max Meyer – smart young #10 who makes correct decisions on the ball most of the time. Unselfish. Doesn't have enough stamina to be effective for 90 minutes yet. Maybe he can become a Modric-like playmaker in the future.
Hojbjerg – I have to say I'm quite disappointed with what I saw. First some context – in the Gladbach game he started as a lone holding midfielder, with Geis on the bench and Goretzka somehow playing on the right wing (Leon moved back into midfield at around 35 minutes, because Gladbach kept carving Schalke open through the middle). He was probably very uncomfortable without the support from Geis, because he didn't know where to run and even worse, didn't show any desire for defensive work whatsoever, basically just standing in the middle and watching the game, letting players run past him at will. There was not much positive to report in attack as well – he didn't move enough to open himself up for a pass, so rarely received the ball and when he finally did, he only made the simplest short pass. Instead of focusing on his own game, he was constantly gesticulating, showing teammates when and where to pass, even where nobody was looking at him or paying attention to his instructions. There was also a moment when he was completely incensed by a hard tackle made on him by Xhaka (a foul, but nothing out of the ordinary) and was visibly fuming about this for a minute. Overall, a very bad impression from that game – petulant attitude coupled with poor work rate.
He was noticeably better when paired with Geis in the game vs Bayer – his partner was willing to sit in front of the defense, so Hojbjerg had license to get further forward. He even had a shot on goal in the first 5 minutes and finally I saw one long-range pass (perfectly weighted and effortless – the ability is still there). Still I have to say he looks very raw, for instance the number of times he stretched half-heartedly to tackle someone and missed (and then simply stopped) is a clear sign on an immature player. He also literally not once tried to run forward with the ball and take an opponent on – something I saw him he do with confidence 2 years ago at Bayern. It was interesting to compare him against Dahoud in the same game; clearly the gap in maturity is huge. Hojbjerg must have a lot of talent, but there was very little actual expression of it on the pitch – I think he needs to find the right coach first and foremost, because clearly whatever they were doing with him at Schalke wasn't working and you can just feel the pent-up frustration in the player. At present he doesn't look fit or motivated.
Goretzka – I only saw him against Gladbach, so not much to say except that he is a hard-working player who never stops running and has solid technique. Scored a goal with the help of a deflection off Xhaka in that game.
Non-Schalke players:
Dahoud – unspectacular 1st half, but grew into the game in the 2nd and almost broke the goal frame with his curling shot from the edge of the area. Inexplicably subbed just as he was growing in influence.
Xhaka – he looked very good, unfortunately, 3 really tasty sliding tackles and just a solid presence in front of the defense. He'll make Arsenal stronger, no doubt.
Christensen – sorry if I disappointed @KayAgeEl with my report on Hojbjerg, but at least I quite liked this Dane! Looks cultured and intelligent like a younger Agger. Curiously, when Dahoud was subbed, Christensen moved into midfield to play further forward than Xhaka, and somehow it worked, because he actually scored the only goal of the game for Gladbach, from open play too! If Chelsea don't have use for him this year (for those who don't know, he's on 2-year loan from Chelsea at Gladbach), I think that's a player we should target.
Jonathan Tah – not much to report, other than that he is big and rather fast.
Julian Brandt – he reminds me of Thomas Muller, such an intelligent use of space for a young player (no wonder, his father is a coach) and he is a natural finisher, despite being a winger. One to watch for sure.
Matip – his playing style is the anti-Sakho. He never overcomplicates things, doesn't try to win every battle decisively, being satisfied with simply containing the opposition and he makes all decisions quickly and without fuss – his attitude is very calm and professional, he seems to play with his head more than emotion. He seems more like a player who will give you 6.5-7/10 performance in every game rather than 8 in one game and 5 in the other. He made a couple of positional mistakes in both games and was generally solid rather than dominant – however he was pretty much dominant in the air and took charge on almost every incoming cross which was good to see. He also has good feet and is quite capable of carrying the ball forward and gliding past players. I think with the right partner he can form a very good combination; I'd like to see him paired with a defender of equal talent and matching qualities – he doesn't quite have this at Schalke, where he's clearly #1 and always has to direct his younger partners.
Sane – last time I saw a complete game with him was in the Fall, also against Bayer, he had an uncharacteristically poor game that night and I think I commented that his defensive contribution was lacking. Well, judging from these two games, he seems to have matured quite a bit – he was using his speed and strength in defense as well as attack and he either created or scored all 4 goals Schalke managed in those games. Very sharp mind and awareness. He has a strong frame in addition to the speed and shields the ball very well (kind of like Sterling). The only question for me is whether he can learn to cut inside near the edge of the area and shoot in the far corner consistently, like Ronaldo – if he does, he'll be world-class for sure, if not he'll just be a dangerous speedy winger. Overall, a great prospect.
Max Meyer – smart young #10 who makes correct decisions on the ball most of the time. Unselfish. Doesn't have enough stamina to be effective for 90 minutes yet. Maybe he can become a Modric-like playmaker in the future.
Hojbjerg – I have to say I'm quite disappointed with what I saw. First some context – in the Gladbach game he started as a lone holding midfielder, with Geis on the bench and Goretzka somehow playing on the right wing (Leon moved back into midfield at around 35 minutes, because Gladbach kept carving Schalke open through the middle). He was probably very uncomfortable without the support from Geis, because he didn't know where to run and even worse, didn't show any desire for defensive work whatsoever, basically just standing in the middle and watching the game, letting players run past him at will. There was not much positive to report in attack as well – he didn't move enough to open himself up for a pass, so rarely received the ball and when he finally did, he only made the simplest short pass. Instead of focusing on his own game, he was constantly gesticulating, showing teammates when and where to pass, even where nobody was looking at him or paying attention to his instructions. There was also a moment when he was completely incensed by a hard tackle made on him by Xhaka (a foul, but nothing out of the ordinary) and was visibly fuming about this for a minute. Overall, a very bad impression from that game – petulant attitude coupled with poor work rate.
He was noticeably better when paired with Geis in the game vs Bayer – his partner was willing to sit in front of the defense, so Hojbjerg had license to get further forward. He even had a shot on goal in the first 5 minutes and finally I saw one long-range pass (perfectly weighted and effortless – the ability is still there). Still I have to say he looks very raw, for instance the number of times he stretched half-heartedly to tackle someone and missed (and then simply stopped) is a clear sign on an immature player. He also literally not once tried to run forward with the ball and take an opponent on – something I saw him he do with confidence 2 years ago at Bayern. It was interesting to compare him against Dahoud in the same game; clearly the gap in maturity is huge. Hojbjerg must have a lot of talent, but there was very little actual expression of it on the pitch – I think he needs to find the right coach first and foremost, because clearly whatever they were doing with him at Schalke wasn't working and you can just feel the pent-up frustration in the player. At present he doesn't look fit or motivated.
Goretzka – I only saw him against Gladbach, so not much to say except that he is a hard-working player who never stops running and has solid technique. Scored a goal with the help of a deflection off Xhaka in that game.
Non-Schalke players:
Dahoud – unspectacular 1st half, but grew into the game in the 2nd and almost broke the goal frame with his curling shot from the edge of the area. Inexplicably subbed just as he was growing in influence.
Xhaka – he looked very good, unfortunately, 3 really tasty sliding tackles and just a solid presence in front of the defense. He'll make Arsenal stronger, no doubt.
Christensen – sorry if I disappointed @KayAgeEl with my report on Hojbjerg, but at least I quite liked this Dane! Looks cultured and intelligent like a younger Agger. Curiously, when Dahoud was subbed, Christensen moved into midfield to play further forward than Xhaka, and somehow it worked, because he actually scored the only goal of the game for Gladbach, from open play too! If Chelsea don't have use for him this year (for those who don't know, he's on 2-year loan from Chelsea at Gladbach), I think that's a player we should target.
Jonathan Tah – not much to report, other than that he is big and rather fast.
Julian Brandt – he reminds me of Thomas Muller, such an intelligent use of space for a young player (no wonder, his father is a coach) and he is a natural finisher, despite being a winger. One to watch for sure.
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