Erik ten Hag’s perfect goalkeeper: A comparative analysis of David de Gea, Diogo Costa and David Raya – Man United News And Transfer News
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Heading into the summer, United will need to iron out some key issues as Eric ten Haag looks to bolster his squad and launch a title race next season.
Midfielders, forwards and defenders are all considered.
Another key position that may need to be checked is the goalie position.
De Gea’s contract will expire after the end of this season, and the Red Devils have yet to announce a renewal.
Reports suggest that De Gea is in talks with the club for an increased stay at Old Trafford, but on significantly reduced terms.
Still, some in the fanbase felt it was the wrong move and it would be unwise to keep the Spaniard.
This season, De Gea’s limitations have been fully reflected. His weaknesses are well known. He’s distributing extremely poorly, kicking the ball with his feet, commanding his box and launching sweeps.
For these reasons, United are in the market for a goalkeeping solution. Two names high on Ten Hag’s wish list are Brentford’s David Raya and Porto’s Diogo Costa.
Let’s see how Costa and Raya rank against De Gea and which goalkeeper fits Ten Hag’s football philosophy best.
Football analyst Jack Fawcett took a deep dive into the three goalkeepers across multiple metrics. The shocking revelation paints a grim image of De Gea’s suitability for Ten Hag’s football brand.
This is something The Peoples Person also detailed a while ago.
Fawcett averaged de Gea, Raya and Costa’s respective career stats and did the math.
According to Fawcett, in terms of shot stops, which are based on the ratio of the probability of a goalkeeper saving a shot to the number of goals conceded, Costa is at the highest level compared to Raya and De Gea.
Raya came in second and De Gea did not perform well. In terms of save percentage, De Gea ranks last with a save percentage of 72.05. Costa’s rescue success rate was 74.5%, while Raya’s rescue success rate was 74.82%.
However, that doesn’t necessarily make Raya the best saver of the three, Fawcett added. The Spaniard faced lower quality shots than De Gea and Costa.
If you consider expected goals per shot (PSxG/SoT), Costa is actually the best shot finisher.
In terms of distribution, Raya attempted 34.69 passes per 90 minutes. Costa attempted 27.95 passes per 90 minutes. De Gea attempted 19.78 passes per 90 minutes.
Serving accuracy can better reflect the goalkeeper’s ability to distribute the ball. Porto No 1 has an accuracy rate of 45.78%. Raya ranked second with 38.78 points. De Gea came in last with 35.68%.
Costa is good at finding his opponents through long stretches.
Regarding sweeps, this is measured by the number of defensive actions per 90 minutes. Raya has an average of 1.50 defensive actions per 90 minutes. Costa averaged 1.19 defensive actions per 90 minutes, while De Gea was again third with 0.73.
De Gea’s inability to sweep wide greatly limited the team’s attempts to play high and high up the pitch. The Red Devils have the second-deepest defense in the league this season.
In terms of crosses, de Gea has only crossed 1.9% of the time in the past six seasons. Contrast this with Raya’s 7.26% and Costa’s incredible 7.5%.
Who is better, Diogo Costa, David Raya or David de Gea? 🤔🧤 pic.twitter.com/vYwiCZmTcI
— Jack Fawcett (@JackFawcett1704) March 10, 2023
The crossover claims to help relieve pressure in the rear and create opportunities for counterattacks.
The numbers and statistics prove that of the trio, Costa is by far the better goalkeeper and should be at the top of the transfer list for the 20-time English champions.
These indicators have made Costa demand him. If he can replicate his performance in the Manchester United shirt, then everyone will see his progress on the pitch.
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