ECHO Everton reporter Chris Beesley looks at how Blues target Kenny Tete's statistics from 2024/25 compare to his Premier League peers
Kenny Tete of Fulham
Kenny Tete of Fulham(Image: Andrew Kearns - CameraSport via Getty Images)
Kenny Tete has a reputation for being one of the top tacklers in Europe’s big five leagues but what other statistics might have enticed Everton to make a move for the defender once his Fulham contract expires at the end of this month?
Speaking to the Sunday Times in 2023, the Dutchman said: “I think back in the day, I would tackle more. Now I don’t tackle that much but when I do, I try to do it at the right moment.
“It is a question of timing and intuition. I try to follow my instinct, not think too much and time my tackle as well as possible.”
Everton want Tete and are trying to seal a deal for the 29-year-old, so what does he bring to the table? While the former Ajax and Olympique Lyonnais ace insists that he’s more selective about when he dives in now he is a senior pro, statistics collated by Comparisonator hint at his combative approach.
The Parameters League tool enables us to compare Tete’s numbers from 2024/25 against all those operating in his position in the Premier League. One on one contests appear to be his forte as with an average of 9.77 per 90 minutes, he wins more duels than any of his peers with James Justin of Leicester City his closest challenger on 9.62 followed by Ben Johnson of Ipswich Town on 9.5 and one of the reasons this figure is so high is because only Crystal Palace’s Daniel Munoz (19.28) is contesting more duels than his 18.96.
Kenny Tete's duels figures for 2024/25 compared to other Premier League players in his position
Kenny Tete's duels figures for 2024/25 compared to other Premier League players in his position
Tete comes in third for ball recoveries in his own half on 6.27, just ahead of Everton’s Jake O’Brien (6.07) in fourth with only Newcastle United’s Kieran Trippier (6.92) and Fulham team-mate Timothy Castagne (6.72) ahead of him. He’s fifth for clearances (2.24), a category topped by Brentford’s Kristoffer Ajer (2.47) while he comes in sixth for interceptions (4.67) where Cottagers colleague Castagne leads the way on 5.2.
Going forward, Tete is also useful as at 0.97, he averages almost a shot a game, a figure that only Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold – who has now joined Real Madrid – (1.36) and Pedro Porro of Tottenham Hotspur (1.05) can top. Tete comes in fourth for opportunities on 0.58 after Alexander-Arnold (0.94); Munoz (0.69) and Porro (0.65) and while 2024/25 was the first time since his debut season in England (2020/21) that he didn’t score, he still ranked fifth for expected goals (xG) on 0.08, a section topped by Diogo Dolot of Manchester United on 0.19.
One area where he does need to improve though is with his deliveries when pushing forwards. Ashley Young, who has left Everton, came third for successful crosses on 1.28 behind Porro (1.76) and Alexander-Arnold (1.43) but Tete was down in 13th on 0.68.
*Comparisonator is a football data comparison tool from 271 professional leagues around the world which compares players and clubs by utilising over 100 different parameters. Click here for more details.