The numbers behind Joshua Zirkzee’s season for Bologna | OneFootball

Mostly dubbed as a mid-table outfit, Bologna have changed the course of their performances this season and have managed to secure a top-four place in the league standings ahead of Christmas.

The Rossoblu have seen a positive intent in their showings since last season, especially when manager Thiago Motta took over the reins at the club. They finished ninth last campaign with just two points short of securing a European championship spot. This finish was far better than they could have ever imagined after struggling to keep themselves afloat in the top flight during the past one.

Bologna’s top-four position at Christmas is owed much to the performances of their young striker Joshua Zirkzee. While Napoli’s Khvicha Kvaratskhelia took the breakout star of the season accolade for the previous edition, this season’s is heavily tilted towards the 22-year-old who is doing wonders with the Petroniani.

Zirkzee has the artful touch and the ability to break defensive lines but what stands out the most is his all-round game. He isn’t a poacher who waits in the box for deliveries from his teammates instead, he gets into the game by dropping deep and distributing the ball to create much more effective chances. 16 goals and nine assists earned this Bayern Munich academy graduate a move to his current side and while he had to wait for his chance in his debut campaign, in this one, he is making a name for himself in the Serie A.

Zirkzee has already started 16 of the 17 matches this season, netting seven times and registering two assists. He is well past of his last season’s tally (2 goals and 2 assists) and with more than half of the term remaining, he is expected to hit significant numbers. The Dutchman holds an xG (expected goals) of 4.6 and npxG (non-penalty expected goals) of 3.9 till now. The current stats aren’t one of a breakout star, it is still considerable playing for a team like Bologna. And his goalscoring numbers are at par with what is expected of him, which says that he isn’t relying on overperformance.

As said before, the striker is better known for his unselfish and all-round game. He has shown that during most of his time on the pitch this season. He has an xAG (expected assists) of 2.5 and his overall heatmap says all about how he doesn’t sit for crosses in the box but drops down and then takes the game to the opponent as his team takes better control.

Joshua Zirkzee has to compete with the likes of Andrea Colpani, Michele Di Gregorio and Alessandro Buongiorno to seal that ‘breakout star’ award at the end of the campaign but one thing is certain if he continues playing the team game, he will surely end up scoring more goals than his past records as he will not only enhance the chemistry but will also develop a far more lethal attacking prowess.

Trambak Bhattacherjee | GIFN