Adrian Clarke runs the rule over summer signings he believes will make an impact for their new clubs in the Premier League.
Bernd Leno
German football has a reputation for developing brave, agile goalkeepers and Arsenal’s new signing Bernd Leno is another off that production line.
With his best years still ahead of him the 26-year-old has the potential to become one of the Premier League’s finest shot stoppers.
Main strengths
Decisiveness is one of Leno’s greatest attributes.
He is quick to narrow down the angles in 1v1 situations and has the courage to use any part of his body to thwart onrushing opponents.
By making himself big and using his legs to block close-range shots, Leno is adept at shutting off space.
He is also incredibly nimble. The German is renowned for his cat-like reflexes and instinctive saves.
Penalty-saving knack
Leno failed to save any of the five penalties he faced in the Bundesliga last term, and has kept out just one of his last 27, but the signing from Bayer Leverkusen was once regarded as a specialist in this area.
In 2013/14 he saved five out of eight spot-kicks in the Bundesliga, including four in a row. Indeed across that campaign he kept out six in total.
Gunners fans will be hoping he rediscovers the knack in 2018/19.
Highs and lows
Last season Petr Cech produced a number of top-class performances, and reached a record 200th clean sheet in the Premier League, but a number of individual errors also crept into his game.
No keeper made more mistakes that led to goals in the Premier League than the Arsenal man. Cech (six) led Asmir Begovic (five), Hugo Lloris (five) and Joe Hart (four) on that score.
Leno v Cech
| 2017/18 | Leno | Cech |
|---|---|---|
| Errors leading to shots (incl. goals) | 2 | 7 |
| Errors leading to goals | 2 | 6 |
Excellent decision-making
It should be noted that Leno is no stranger to high-profile mistakes himself, although he did cut down on his error count during 2017/18. He was caught out of position twice when coming off his line.
Overall his handling and decision-making were excellent, however, and on average it took longer for opponents to breach his goal than it did for teams to score past Cech.
| 2017/18 | Leno | Cech |
|---|---|---|
| Mins played | 2970 | 3040 |
| Mins per goals conceded | 74 | 63 |
| Save percentage | 63.6% | 64.4% |
| Punches | 10 | 20 |
| Catches | 29 | 31 |
Making concessions
Both goalkeepers did concede more goals than the statisticians would have expected them to, based on the quality of the shots on target they faced last term (xG conceded).
And, statistically, Leno actually fared worse than Cech in this area.
No doubt Arsenal believe that those numbers will pick up when he begins life in the Premier League in August.
Expected goals conceded comparison
| Player | xG conceded total | Goals conceded | Goals prevented |
|---|---|---|---|
| Leno | 35.6 | 40 | -4.5 |
| Cech | 46.1 | 48 | -1.9 |
Sound distribution
Leno is certainly comfortable with the ball at his feet, which may help Unai Emery’s side play out from the back with greater confidence in 2018/19.
For Bayer Leverkusen in the Bundesliga, he was used as an 11th outfield player more often than Cech was for Arsenal in the English top flight, so should Emery choose to adopt this style it would suit him.
I also expect Leno to launch frequent counter-attacks as he likes to get the game moving quickly.
Leno and Cech pass comparison
| 2017/18 | Leno | Cech |
|---|---|---|
| Short passes | 498 | 349 |
| Long passes | 613 | 462 |
| Pass accuracy | 66.7% | 65.4% |
Good investment
Having made over 300 first-team appearances in his career already, Arsenal have brought in a very experienced and talented goalkeeper.
With time to develop and improve, the acquisition of Leno looks to be a sound investment.
