Barcelona have had a tough season, both in the Spanish La Liga and the UEFA Champions League. The Catalans are currently ninth in the league standings with just 17 points from their 12 games. They have had problems in both attack and defense and have just won four league games so far. They have made a comeback to the second spot in the UCL after beating Dynamo Kyiv twice. Recently, they replaced manager Ronald Koeman with club legend Xavi Hernández, who has taken over and is looking to turn around the club’s season. Memphis Depay has been their best player this season, and has scored six goals and provided two assists for them, while Ansu Fati has also scored four times for them. In this post, we will have a look at some of the attacking stats of Memphis Depay for Barcelona.
The above viz is the attacking dashboard for Memphis Depay in the UEFA Champions League for this season. The black line depicts the average of the particular stat for all midfielders in the UCL. In the UCL, Barcelona have had two very poor performances and two decent ones, where they have pulled off 1-0 wins. He has been good in these games, but his best performances have come in La Liga. He has scored six and assisted two goals in the league and has been their best player by a long distance.
Depay’s pass map shows that he has not played only as a number nine centre-forward, but has often dropped deeper to get involved in build-ups. The Catalans have not had a great season, as they are ninth in the league and had a very bad start to their UCL campaign. Depay has been a successful summer signing though and has proved himself to be the best player at Hernández’s disposal.
Memphis Depay’s heat map shows that he has not been playing at a fixed position since the start of the season. He has started in the centre of attack as well as on the left side. The heat map shows positions in the UCL, where he predominantly played on the left-hand side. As the season has progressed, he has been playing more centrally and has been among the goals for Barcelona domestically.
Xavi will be looking to improve the team and get better results. He will at least aim for a top-four finish in the league and will hope to get through to the knockout stages of the UCL. It is going to be a difficult task, and Depay will have to play a big role this season if Xavi wants to achieve his goals.
