Will Masch Be Missed? Not So Much...
Posted 27/07/10 11:29EmailPrintSave
It is as predictable as it is amusing. As soon as it looks almost certain that Javier Mascherano will leave Liverpool, Reds fans - like dumped 14-year-old girls - are racing to say that they never really liked him anyway. Apparently he's a liability, cannot pass, contributes nothing and Lucas Leiva can do exactly the same job for less money. Of course, they never, ever thought he was the best defensive midfielder in the world. Oh no.
This syndrome is not particular to Liverpool fans. The same Manchester United fans who sang "Fergie, Fergie, sign him up" were decrying Carlos Tevez as a rich man's Dirk Kuyt as soon as he joined Manchester City. Those Gunners who were heralding Emmanuel Adebayor as the equal of Didier Drogba were apparently happy to see his lazy arse head north towards Manchester.
But in the case of Mascherano, the statistics would appear to back those Liverpool fans happy to make a profit on the Argentine hatchet man. Over the last three years, Liverpool have won 54% of the Premier League games in which he has featured. Without him, their success rate rises to 65%. Predictably, Liverpool have scored significantly more goals per game (2.25 v 1.88) without a player who has netted just one league goal in Liverpool colours.
That Mascherano is not a match-winner is no surprise, but the real shock lies in the statistic that although Liverpool concede fewer goals with him screening the defence, they have lost 19% of the Premier League games in which he has played, as opposed to 4% without him. That suggests a significant number of 1-0 defeats in which Mascherano offered little or nothing going forward.
His supporters might point to the statistic that Mascherano completed more tackles in the Premier League than any other player last season, but the very fact that the second player on that list is the utterly-unheralded Wigan midfielder Mohamed Diame negates that claim. As does the fact that Mascherano had the worst disciplinary record of any player in the top flight. He certainly makes tackles, but he mistimes enough for it to be a problem.
This is not to say that revisionist Liverpool fans are right and Mascherano is overrated. Anyone with half a brain can watch Mascherano against European giants in the Champions League and see where his real value lies. But with Liverpool not in the Champions League, and Inter apparently willing to offer £25m for a player whose impact in the Premier League is statistically negative, it makes perfect sense to cash in now on a footballer clearly not happy on Merseyside.
That kind of money is massive for a spoiler whose real value is only apparent against the kind of quality opposition Liverpool will face fewer times next season. He can be adequately replaced for less than half the price. He may be sorely missed against Manchester United and Chelsea, but he will certainly not be missed against Wigan or Wolves. In those games, Scott Parker or an equivalently-talented and priced alternative would be at least as effective.
Mascherano's absence will be felt by those neutrals who appreciate a tough tackler as much as a tricky winger and I would still happily argue that he is one of the world's best exponents of that role. But with big money on the table that could buy three or four players, it's a no-brainer to let the match-spoiler go if the alternative is selling match-winners or match-savers like Fernando Torres, Steven Gerrard or Pepe Reina.
Sarah Winterburn
