João Cancelo is Very F***ing Good
Title says it all, really.
A few weeks ago, analytics messiah James Yorke pointed this out:
Like most in the analytics community, James is using a proxy to draw a conclusion about something that perhaps can’t be directly quantified (this is why James is smart and good). While largely performing at the same level they have been for the past few years, Manchester City hasn’t seen the same output in this crazy COVID season, and thus, questions have been asked. Is their pressing to blame? Maybe David Silva’s departure is affecting the team in ways we can’t immediately understand? Is Pep just losing it?
All valid questions.
So, in perusing the numbers, Manchester City’s measly right back turned left back turned right winger registering some of the highest passing numbers in advanced positions sent up a red flag about a side that hasn’t enjoyed their typical returns. And rightly so! In a normal side, with more run of the mill players, Cancelo’s output in the final third- relative to his *role* and our communal expectation of said position- would be a tad strange. Especially given Manchester City aren’t supposedly as reliant on their fullbacks for direct chance creation as, say, Liverpool, AND he’s only being beaten out by one of Manchester City’s many FIFA-cover worthy attackers.
What James failed to account for is Joao Cancelo. Cancelo is no normal fullback. He’s Joao Cancelo. He doesn’t play by your rules. Need a right back? Great. Need a left back? Great. Need a wing back, yes, either side? Great. Need your fullback to invert? Done. Need them to dominate the flank on both sides of the ball? Anything else? Oh, that’s it? Great.
Jokes and shitposting aside, Joao under Pep is like rocket-fuel to a well-ventilated area. Where the admirable talents and plasticity of Fabian Delph allowed City to cope with the loss of Benjamin Mendy in Pep’s second season, Cancelo’s varied abilities allow City to thrive in the increasingly ambiguous position of ‘fullback’ under Pep Guardiola.
The above are two fantastic examples of direct involvement from Cancelo, but what’s more important than the key passes or assists is his comfort in what often amounts to a half-space. Like a fish to water, Cancelo is able to recycle possession, offer offensive creativity in crucial areas, and even occupy important spaces across City’s fluid front five despite our conception of what position he fills best.
Among the many metaphysical terms coined by Immanuel Kant, the one that springs to mind when attempting to describe the brilliance of Cancelo in this City team is ‘techne.’ What Kant attempted to properly codify was the phenomena of improvisation. When someone has a clear grasp on the fundamentals of a specific practice, say, playing football, they can then imbue their own personal expression or creativity onto the practice through the ‘language’ of the fundamentals they view as modes of expression. All this is to say; Joao Cancelo can do anything.
To quote the annoyingly pedantic Nathan A Clark, ‘players are not positions.’ They are merely athletes who have found consistent associations with specific roles in the footballing world. To limit our view of what Cancelo is capable of because he typically starts near the back of the pitch would be to rob him and ourselves of a player that can do this:
Very cool, specific examples aside, through data provided by [REDACTED], I found that Cancelo is averaging 0.19 expected assists (xA), 4.6 touches in the box, 3.6 final third entries, 1.7 interceptions, 3 tackles, and 1.8 dribbles this season, all per 90, all of which sit at or near the best in his position. And these are measures that have largely been consistent with his entire career- even in the ‘flop’ season of yesteryear.
Cancelo, in every sense of the word, is a verifiable monster on both sides of the ball. So, while I think James’ proxy practice is valid in a number of, even most, situations, he might be barking up the wrong tree when it comes to Cancelo at City. His exceptional performance in the variety of roles he finds himself suited to is part and parcel of the Cancelo Experience™.
The twitter guy writes some fire stuff !!