Everton have been linked with a potential move for Julian Brandt who is leaving Borussia Dortmund this summer when his contract expires
Julian Brandt is leaving Borussia Dortmund this summer
Julian Brandt is leaving Borussia Dortmund this summer
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Julian Brandt was once the player that Jurgen Klopp wanted for Liverpool ahead of Mohamed Salah, but now he could be moving to Everton on a free transfer.
Back in 2017, the then Reds boss told Anfield officials that he preferred to raid his homeland for the Germany international rather than taking a punt on a player who had already flopped in the Premier League at Chelsea. Speaking to BBC documentary, How to Win the Champions League: Liverpool last year, the club’s former director of research Ian Graham said: “Jurgen’s preferred option for that summer was Julian Brandt, who was a great player. Jurgen had obviously known him very well, coming from the Bundesliga, and knew the German market very well.
“We agreed that Brandt was a very good young player but not a standout in the same way that Mo was. From our data analysis point of view Mo was the best young wide forward in Europe, full stop.
“Roma were under pressure to sell because their finances were not in a good place, so we knew he was available for a good price. He played a forward and wide role that we needed to fill at the time, whereas Brandt was more of an attacking midfielder.
“It’s to Jurgen’s credit that he engaged in that debate in an honest way with his eyes open to say: ‘Okay, I’m open to be convinced, show me that Mo is better.’”
Some 254 goals in 433 games – including 44 in his first season – have surely vindicated that decision with the Egyptian, but perhaps Brandt could soon be getting his move to Merseyside after all? Earlier this month it was confirmed that Brandt – who turns 30 on May 2 – will be leaving Borussia Dortmund when his contract expires this summer.
Following a 2-1 win at Cologne where Brandt had set up Maximilian Beier’s goal, the club’s managing director Lars Ricken said: “There have already been a few reports, and it’s simply that there were open talks and everyone agreed that the expiring contract wouldn’t be extended.
“He played a few hundred games for Borussia Dortmund (298 to date with 56 goals). I think we can only be grateful to him for playing with us for seven years. He was sometimes criticised, but even today with his assist, I loved his style.”
In light of this decision, Football Insider report that Everton continue to keep tabs on Brandt and having been heavily linked with him earlier in the season, sources have told them the Blues have him on their radar once again.
Just what of a player is Brandt? It’s already been suggested that he’s more of a hybrid attacking midfielder than being a pure winger.
Throughout his club career, Transfermarkt calculate he has played 229 matches in a central attacking midfield role, 162 on the left wing, 95 on the right wing, 44 in central midfield, eight as a second striker and five as a centre-forward. Comparisonator rate Brandt as 6 out of 10 as a ‘maestro,’ a central playmaker responsible for dictating the tempo and progressing the ball into advanced areas.
This kind of player excels at creative passing actions and final third decision-making, focusing on distributing and orchestrating rather than focusing on direct scoring with Kevin De Bruyne cited as an exemplar. In contrast, Brandt scores 5.7 out of 10 as a shadow striker; 4.9 as a space invader and 3.7 as a mobile attacking midfielder.
In terms of which current Premier League player he is deemed closest in style to, Everton’s very own Dwight McNeil scores highest in a similarity comparison with a match of 97%. After him it’s Bruno Fernandes of Manchester United (92%); Cole Palmer of Chelsea (90%) and compatriot Florian Wirtz of Liverpool (88%).
Comparisonator’s Virtual Transfer tool also enables us to correlate Brandt’s statistics from the Bundesliga to Premier League players in his position. If Liverpool’s recruitment team remained unconvinced nine years ago, then their Everton counterparts might also be underwhelmed now.
Brandt’s total distance covered per 90 minutes averages at 7.341km which would only place him 22nd in his position in the Premier League. For context, Everton’s Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall creeps into the top 10 with an average of 10.022km while the division leader is Domink Szoboszlai of Liverpool on 11.323km.
Brandt has retained an eye for a goal and has hit double figures this term for the third time in the last four seasons. His six in the Bundesliga give him an average of 0.27 goals per game which would place him eighth in the Premier League, which is also better than his expected goals (xG) of 0.2 which would put him at 13th.
Julian Brandt's goals per 90 minutes in the Bundesliga this season for Borussia Dortmund compared to Premier League players in his position
Julian Brandt's goals per 90 minutes in the Bundesliga this season for Borussia Dortmund compared to Premier League players in his position
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His 1.13 shots per 90 minutes would only rank him 20th in the Premier League in a category where Matheus Cunha of Manchester United is top, averaging 3.5 per game, but he’d be placed ninth for shots on target (0.9) in a section also led by Cunha on 1.5. His 0.47 successful dribbles per 90 minutes would only place him 23rd behind leader Xavi Simons of Tottenham Hotspur on 2.33, but it is better than Dewsbury-Hall’s 0.33.
Brandt doesn’t tend to waste possession as his 7.73 ball losses per 90 minutes, a figure that would put him sixth in his position in the Premier League behind leader Emile Smith Rowe of Fulham (4.95) suggests. He’s not particularly dynamic out of possession though as he comes in at number 24 for ball recoveries (2.67, with Szoboszlai top on 7); 25 for picking up loose balls (0.93, with Lucas Paqueta of West Ham United top on 4.33); and 26 for interceptions (1, with Enzo Le Fee of Sunderland top on 3.38).
When it comes to his distribution, he’s 20th for passing (26) and 19th for successful passes (21), categories where Dewsbury-Hall is ranked seventh for both with figures of 33.83 and 28.5. Brandt’s 1.87 successful passes in the final third would place him 19th behind leader Fernandes on 7.4 and Dewsbury-Hall in sixth on 3.67, but while he’s also way behind Fernandes in top spot for key passes (1.8), his figure of 0.47 puts him 13th, a couple of places above Dewsbury-Hall on 0.44.
Brandt could potentially offer big game experience and nous for a bargain price, especially if Everton were to qualify for Europe and require a bigger squad. David Moyes is a self-confessed fan of German football and would have considered a stint working in the Bundesliga before he took up his opportunity to coach in Spain with Real Sociedad, but perhaps he’d demanding higher energy levels than what the Bremen-born player could offer him coming into the Premier League at a relatively advanced stage of his career.
*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.
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