Andrés Iniesta: Measuring the magic. MESSI IS BETTER Dedicated to Helenio
POTENTIAL
PHYSICAL
anaerobically very limited, however has a great capacity for prolonged aerobic exercise, especially at medium speeds. Their lightness allows movements and incursions closed to larger players and shows naturally the roughness of the opponent if it is less fragile than it appears.
PSYCHIC
is a player whose psyche has been forged in an environment of relative inferiority which has enabled the development of a large temple in situations that other players would be stressful. Its performance improvement to increased demand and your ability to concentrate is not prejudiced whatever stage.
TECHNICAL
hardly find a finer player in ball handling, both in its driving and control, and has great accuracy at dribbling, passing short midway. Defensively is highly effective thanks to its set of arms and ankles speed.
TACTICS
phenomenal pressure, excellent in both offensive and defensive support. The word that best defines him is versatility, it can interpret any position significantly in midfield and the second line, and outstanding as offensive midfielder, hook and false end. On your computer is usually the toughest player to tie it tactically exploits both the space and the lack thereof.
LIMITATIONS
PHYSICAL
Its low weight and low top speed prevent him from defensive duties beyond pressure and overflow capacity in one-a nimble and quick to players is limited. Unable in the air.
PSYCHIC
you tend to exploit their fragile image, sometimes the script against the party or the discretion of the referee. Rarely takes effective leadership team
TECHNICAL
Null passing game, little firepower, scoring ability improved.
TACTICS
sometimes misses the opportunity to be himself the executor of moves not able to exploit their partners.
BRIEF HISTORICAL-STATISTICAL
born on May 11, 1984
2002-2004
still part of the second computer, but Louis van Gaal Antic and Rijkaard first and then you are giving opportunities to score in 22 appearances two seasons, half as a starter.
In his first performance he played defensive midfielder and the following was placed, preferably, in the band. Was an age of transition for the club, with a drought of several years without a title and had 6 coaches in 4 years
2004-2006
Rijkaard, which is becoming technical leader of a new project, which amounts to the first team. During these years the club returns to the path of the league title and win its second European Cup.
Iniesta is used extensively, especially as first alternate, given its versatility and adaptability to different scenarios. Dispute in 90 games two seasons, more than half substitute and provides 3 goals and 6 assists. But it is still a player without precise location in the center of the field, cornered by Xavi, Deco and a means of containment depending on the season and occasion, used to be occupied by Marquez, Edmilson and Van Bommel.
2006-2008
In a somewhat turbulent period Rijkaard finds stability creative midfield with Xavi-Iniesta partner.
Xavi, whose physical limitations prevented him from playing as a defensive midfielder or as a security offensive midfielder, is in the ubiquity of Albacete a perfect complement to bring out their excellent technical and tactical. The team can not win the league but his goalscoring figures are around 80 goals per season in Europe is going to fall in the second round to reach the semifinal.
Iniesta In this period, played about 119 games, 92 as a starter, scoring 13 goals and handing out 8 assists.
2008-2011 In the summer of 2008 to produce two first-order tactical events. In the national team, Luis Aragonés, given the lack of consistency in the national game due to lack of specialists constant in the band chooses to supplement the bilge of the defense with a priority to play in the midfield, sometimes lining up to 5 midfielders, in order to ensure possession of the ball as a means of increasing the chances and reduce the opponent. This revolution had the effect of achieving the 2008 European Championship and World Cup in 2010.
In Barcelona, \u200b\u200bGuardiola fits this conversion to the club's tradition of playing with 3 attackers and supplements it with a line very early pressure. The result is a suffocating team without the ball and almost unattainable with him, and several national and international titles during the most gold of the Catalan club.
In both schemes, the couple set up Xavi, Iniesta the generator of the possession, control and game creation.
dispute in this period, including club selection, 165 games, 142 of them starts, scoring 20 goals and handing out 32 assists, and appearing at times as critical as the 2009 Champions League semi-final or final 2010 World Cup.
SOME NOTES
STATISTICAL
RATIO AS MEDIO-OFENSIVO/CREATIVO (Max. 100): 96.1
include their data in the 2010-11 season in the league and Champions Cup until March 17, 2011 and averaged 35 games for the figures of 38 for the player and his team.
To understand the methodology, please see these two links
to understand the concept of relevant information
to see the development process time. Pay close attention to Annex 1 to understand the maximum reference value.
INFLUENCE ON THE GAME XAVI
to the 2006-2007 season in which both players are content as regular partner in the Barcelona midfield, midfielder Xavi was a very gifted technically and tactically whose physical limitations (small-scale, low speed, low firepower) made him a player and bit plane transcendent in the game for his team.
His capacity for work and tactical intelligence allowed him to play in the league in the period 2001-2006 (from 20 to 26 years), 146 games, 138 of them starts, dealing in all that period 22 assists, suffering 756 turnovers and getting the recovery of 659 (balance of -13%), the percentage of passes good was around 82%. Their results were quite discreet and was constantly challenged by much of FC Barcelona who was running in favor of a destabilizing dynamic player.
From the 2006-07 season, Iniesta, who was gradually overcoming their ongoing muscle damage and gaining the trust of Rijkaard, began to become his regular companion, producing an interesting synergy in the Albacete compensated with his mobility, his dribble, his ability to go into space and tactical opportunism, the game somewhat flat and monotone of his companion. A Xavi change added balance, serenity and control the game somewhat erratic and unstable of their participation. Harvey went from being a clean but limited midfielder whose survival tactics at the highest competitive level was under discussion, to become a prized ingredient in the rich attacking play Barca.
From then until now the de Terrassa has played 163 League games, 152 starts, totaling 48 assists. Also 1079 has been turnovers and managed to recover 623 (balance of -42%), the percentage of passes good now exceeds 90%.
This increased volume of turnover / recovered and the near doubling attendance rate despite the marked deterioration of the balance Recuperatorios, is indicative of positional advancement Xavi, which was not possible until Iniesta could complement their aid in attack and defense, with his help at the start of the ball, and even with the recovery of some losses, some of the major flaws of your partner.
Today
both averaged 91 and 88% of good passes which, largely occurring among themselves, with this society as safe and efficient nuclear because of the high levels of FC Barcelona team's possession.
CONSISTENCY FROM Iniesta Messi and Xavi
Since coming to the bench Barca coach Pep Guardiola has been shown that the best version of many of his players occurs when playing for his club rather than with your selection. Being such a high quality team tactics culé is logical to understand that in this case the group end up producing synergy factor on its members, so that the loss of the collective scheme would be behind this drop in performance.
In these almost 3 years different combinations of players in midfield and the front Barcelona (spaces in which more accurately analyze our protagonist), but there has been a trio of players that has remained constant as long as the injuries have allowed and what is not in vain are almost unanimously considered the essence of the superiority of Barca, Xavi, Iniesta and Messi.
If relativized gross direct productivity (ie, the sum of goals and assists, or whatever it is, the number of goals the team where they intervene decisively) the player with the number of matches played (on the ownership convention 1 = 4 games out of alternate), we will have a direct productivity index relative itself will only be useful to compare players of a similar demarcation, but allows us to compare the figures of the same player on two different computers. In this case we analyze the direct productivity figures on Messi, Iniesta and Xavi both when playing with the club (are accounted League, Cup and Champions League) as their selections (only official meetings are recorded, whether or tournament qualifiers .)
Messi If we see every single year, and therefore the entire period, manifests a constant striking is that their selection is almost 4 times less productive than it is in Barcelona, depending on the year ranging between 2.5 and 8.5 times less.
Xavi If we see that the golden 2008-09 season followed by two numbers whose gray seasons announce the start of the decline of the player. In any case the selection productivity is 30% lower.
For Iniesta should be borne in mind that the 2009-10 season was almost permanently injured or affected by discomfort, which led him to play fewer minutes with the club and only 2 games for the , 1 as a starter. However, it appears as a constant that productivity does not worsen with combined national in any year, the three players being considered which seems more consistent with a change of equipment and, perhaps, the one whose performance showed it closer to its intrinsic quality.
How can we evaluate data on Messi and Xavi Iniesta and Barcelona? For Messi seems very clear that playing away from their regular partners decreased enough performance, and planting doubts about the true extent of its extraordinary quality. For Xavier, it is quite evident also that the change of team productivity worsens though perhaps not so much because his regular partner to dance does not change one set to another. But one can speculate about the dependence of Albacete player can have, especially if we consider that in the year that Andrew was injured, the productivity of the selection Xavi was zero in 6 games.
CORRELATION WITH GOALS AND YOUR TEAM WINS
We will evaluate the latter point the relationship between games played by the player and three-digit major group. One is the number of goals per game scored by their peers in all competitions, that is, the less the total of the team's own player, so we can see part of the impact of this, that it remains an attacking midfielder and creative, and therefore a cornerstone in the productivity of his fellow attackers.
Another is the team's winning percentage in league and Champions League first phase, which looks from a different perspective for the same contribution, marked more or less goals, all are directed towards the sum of three points whose accumulation provides or League or not qualifying for the knockout rounds of the highest tournament.
The last is the number of contested qualifiers and Champions Cup, adding one extra in case the final has been won. This figure clearly shows the team's success in qualifying tournaments like the previous one talked about the success in tournaments regularly.
We hauled this point to the last three seasons, considering that both the game system, like most of the companions, as the player's role within the team have remained relatively constant.
Comparing the data from the three seasons shows that the absence of Iniesta for many games last season, and just in the last third of the championship, a decline of 6% in the goals scored by their peers and a loss of competitiveness in the qualifying tournaments.
only improved the percentage of wins in a league that seems increasingly dual.
The following year, the current season, is the most games being played since he took the first team and this is reflected in the improvement of goals by their peers (almost 10% more) winning percentage in both the league and the Champions League, and until the date of this article, we have exceeded all Cup and Champions League qualifiers, each of the absolute data points on goal and the best in the long history of the Catalan club.
CAN PROPOSE CANDIDATES FOR THE NEXT ITEM.
The condition is that there has to be, or in the same league, or the same country.