As usual, Jose Mourinho called it right. The Special One has always insisted his second season should be the one that defines him and so far, at least, it’s looking good for Real Madrid. Three points clear of Barcelona at the top of La Liga and with a game in hand, winning all five of their Champions League fixtures to date, the Spanish giants have been in irresistible form and have clearly upped their game since last time round.
Racking up 49 goals in just fourteen league fixtures, they’re comfortably on course to better last term’s tally of 102. In front of goal, they’ve been ruthless - Cristiano Ronaldo has been typically prolific, with 17 goals already, Karim Benzema has chipped in with 7 from as many starts and, with 12 goals from seven starts and seven sub appearances, Gonzalo Higuain has also surpassed his total of 10 for the 2010/11 campaign.
While the goalscorers hog the headlines, Angel Di Maria has been a creative tour de force. With the Argentine leading the way in Europe’s top five leagues when it comes to assists, WhoScored decided to analyse his performances this season, comparing them to the previous campaign in an attempt to ascertain just why he’s been such a key figure for Mourinho’s Madrid thus far:
Distribution
Last season saw Mesut Ozil as Madrid’s main creator; the German provided 3.3 key passes per game, picking up 17 assists over the course of the campaign. Di Maria picked up 11 assists from an average 2 key passes over his 35 appearances - this worked out as 1 assist for every 6.3 key passes, which was better than Ozil’s average of 1 per every 6.9 and hinted at his potential.
Already this season, though, Di Maria has picked up 11 assists. His key passes have slightly increased to 2.2 per game, but he now makes more than any Madrid player, with Ozil’s dropping considerably down to 1.8. The quality of Di Maria’s final ball has seen him average 1 assist for every 2.3 key passes this season, though, not far off three times the success rate of last term - Ozil’s 5 assists mean he has also increased in creative potency, producing 1 per 5 key passes.
It’s not as if Di Maria is seeing much more of the ball, either; last season, he averaged 29.2 passes, which has only just increased to 32.8 this term. Xavi Alonso, on the other hand, has taken on far greater importance this season for Mourinho’s side; his 60.2 passes have jumped massively to 89.5 per game, an increase of almost 50%.
Offensive Stats
Another noticeable difference in Di Maria’s game has been the decrease in successful dribbles. Last season, he made 1.9 per game but this has dropped to 1.4, suggesting he has become more of a team player and less of an individual. Indeed, a look at all of Madrid’s key players shows the same pattern, as they become more of a unit in Mourinho’s second season, as opposed to a collection of individuals. Ronaldo’s has dipped from 2.2 down to 1.4 on the opposite wing, with Ozil also down from 1.2 to 0.7; all round, it seems that instead of trying to force the issue, the final pass has been easier to deliver as the team develop an understanding.
In terms of goal attempts, Di Maria has also upped his efficiency, despite a minimal increase in the number of efforts. He has produced 2.3 shots per game this term compared to 2.1 last time but has already scored 3 goals, half of his tally for 2010/11. This works out at a goal every 9.3 attempts this season, whereas last term, he found the net with every 12.1 efforts- another significant increase in his overall efficiency as an attacking force.
Madrid Finishing
Finally, a look at the finishing stats of Ronaldo, Benzema and Higuain may shed some light on just why Di Maria – and Ozil, to a lesser extent - has upped his efficiency when it comes to supplying the final ball. The trio were Madrid’s top scorers last season and are leading the way once again but a look at all three shows that, despite having less efforts on goal, they have all improved when it comes putting the ball in the back of the net.
Ronaldo’s 40 goals last season came from a total of 252 shots, which works out at a goal every 6.3 efforts; this time round he has scored 17 goals from 87 attempts, which is 1 goal per 5.1 attempts. Higuain was the most clinical finisher of the three last season but has upped his stats considerably once again - a goal every 4.9 shots in 2010/11 has dropped to 1 per 2.4 attempts, an incredible ruthlessness in front of goal that has brought him 12 goals from just 29 shots. Benzema, despite scoring 7 times in comparison to the other two, has found the net with every 4 attempts on goal, up from last season’s average of 1 goal per 5.4 shots.
Clearly, in all areas, Madrid have become a far more efficient team this time round and Di Maria is benefitting hugely from the overall improvement of the side as a unit. With the main three finishers demonstrating such clinical ability in front of goal, his creativity will surely continue to flourish as Mourinho’s formidable looking side attempt to wrestle the title from Barcelona in his all-important second campaign in charge at the Bernabeu. Next up, El Clasico!
