Chelsea
smashed the world record fee for a goalkeeper by signing Kepa Arrizabalaga
from Athletic Bilbao for £71m - and an in-depth study suggests the youngster
is an ideal replacement for the outgoing Thibaut Courtois.
The Blues swooped for the 23-year-old as Courtois swapped Stamford Bridge
for the Bernabeu in a £35m deal - but is the Spain prospect capable of
filling the Belgian's boots in west London?
Sky Sports caught up with Sam Jackson, who heads the analytics consultancy
arm of football agency World in Motion/ GK1, to find out...
Jackson's data suggests Kepa is statistically almost identical to Courtois
in ability and style - narrowly edging his predecessor in both shot-stopping
and distribution.
Kepa now ranks as the Premier League's second-best stopper for distribution
- behind only Ederson at Manchester City.
In terms of shot-stopping, the Spaniard ranks 10th out of 26 - with
Manchester United 'keeper David de Gea leading the pack by some distance.
Athletic finished 16th in La Liga last term with Kepa between the sticks,
whereas Chelsea ended the season fifth in the Premier League - so the former
understandably conceded more goals, kept fewer clean sheets and made more
saves.
However, the two goalkeepers' stats for accurate passes, keeper sweepings
and clearances are strikingly similar - although Chelsea's record signing
will want to reduce his tally of two errors leading to goals last season.
Kepa & Courtois Compared, league 2017/18
| Stat |
Kepa |
Courtois |
| Minutes Played |
2,700 |
3,150 |
| Clean Sheets |
7 |
15 |
| Goals Conceded |
43 |
34 |
| Saves |
99 |
76 |
| Errors Leading to Goals |
2 |
0 |
| Accurate Passes |
589 |
692 |
| Clearances |
21 |
17 |
De Gea required time to settle in at Manchester United when he moved to
England as a 20-year-old in 2011, and time will tell whether Kepa requires
similar patience and if Maurizio Sarri's £71m gamble will pay off. But the
stats show why Chelsea were so keen to bring him in to replace Courtois.
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