Over Weah Too Soon
It appears Timothy Weah has played his last game for the club as part of his short loan move from Paris Saint Germain. It was brief, but he leaves some good numbers.
When he arrived I was quite excited and wrote Welcoming Timothy Weah.
Summary Data
522 minutes is not really long enough to form much of a conclusion being the equivalent of only 5.8 full games. Additionally, he has played in a variety of positions:
Wide attacking left
Wide attacking right
Number 10
Striker
This makes judging consistency even more difficult.
However, there were glimpses of potential that shine through the numbers.
Goal Threat Stats
In his short career before Celtic, Weah has averaged 0.46 goals per 90m. He has improved that at Celtic.
His Goals per 90m average is the best in the squad (remember: he falls below my threshold of 10 complete matches or 900 minutes before I start reporting). His Expected Goals (xG) matches almost exactly his actual goals at 0.687 and is also the highest in the squad.
He takes more shots that anyone else, 4.14.
And Weah’s overall shot conversion rate of 17% is the same as Edouard and Sinclair who, by this metric, are the best finishers.
Overall Attacking Stats
Let’s consider positioning and movement off the ball.
Firstly, he is behind only Edouard in Receive Impect. What this awfully named metric illustrates is the ability to receive forward passes that take out opponents (i.e. the most difficult ones). They indicate the ability to find space, to adopt good body shape to receive a pass, and to show good technique to control that pass and complete the next action.
Secondly, he manages to get possession of the ball 5.86 times per 90m within the opposition box. Dembele was the best at this, and in the current squad, worryingly, Burke and Weah would be next highest. We know Edouard likes to do work outside the box and this illustrates the need to find a striker who will take possession in the opposition danger zone.
Speaking of Danger Zones, Weah provides 0.86 passes into that fertile scoring zone per 90m. The known creatives in the squad are ahead of him – Christie, McGregor and Forrest. Griffiths leads mainly due to set piece passes.
In terms of creativity, a couple of negatives to prove a positive. Only Ntcham and Hayes have more incomplete passes amongst attack minded players. And only Hayes has more incomplete crosses than Weah. The reason you can interpret this as a positive is that it may indicate Weah puts risk into his pass selection, which is a good thing in an attacker. Or he could just be a rubbish passer!
My aggregated attacking threat indicator is CAT Score. Only Burke has a higher average this season that Weah’s 10 per 90m.
Finally, he is behind only Edouard in overall Scoring Contribution (Goals and Assists per 90m) but leads the squad on xSC (i.e. Expected Scoring Contribution) at 0.985 per 90m or nearly 1 goal or assist a game.
Defensive Stats
You may wonder why I am writing about defensive stats for an attacker. In my introductory article on Weah, I pointed out that his Yellow Cards per 90m record was nearly twice that of Brown’s! I thought it might indicate he is a battler (or it could be Morelos type indiscipline).
He wins 2.76 challenges per 90m which is the highest of the recognised strikers.
Overall, he wins back possession 32% of the time from challenges which is equal to Forrest. I have shown on many occasions Forrest is the best “defender” of the attackers we have in that regard.
Finally, he did not disappoint (!) on the Yellow Card front averaging 0.34 per 90m. Only Toljan is higher but that is due to his poor positional play. With Weah, it is tenacity and aggression in the press.
Summary
Two caveats:
Weah has played only 522 minutes and I wouldn’t generally report his numbers until he had played over 900 minutes.
I have selected the positive data to show his potential.
However, transparency out the way, the metrics where he is shining are important ones! His xG and xSC numbers are on par with Edouard. He puts risk into the final third by entering the box, trying trickier passes and crosses, and taking most shots.
He is also combative and suitable to a high pressing strategy.
Overall, I’d be delighted if Celtic could get him back for another season.