PSV Eindhoven persisted in their bad patch and failed to take advantage of an Ajax side in crisis, losing away to FC Emmen. Ruud van Nistelrooy’s side was surprised by a combative Emmen side and, with the help of an avoidable sending-off of Maurio Junior, were overtaken by Lucaa Bernadou’s goal. The hosts took the field with a 3-4-2-1, while PSV lined up with a classic 4-2-3-1. Emmen played with a rather low defensive line, aimed at exploiting the counter-attack. In the first half, Emmen adequately contained El-Ghazi, who played centre forward and only suffered on their left side. PSV were caught unprepared by the hosts’ goal and showed themselves to be a team that has been compromised by disposals and their coach’s inability to react.
Ratings:
- A1 – Very good, could play higher
- A2 – Strong potential to play higher
- B1 – Good, strong player at level
- B2 – Potential to be a strong player at level
- C – Average for the level, rewatch
- D – Below average in this match
Johan Bakayoko
Player profile:
- Nationality: Belgium/Cote d’Ivoire
- Age: 19
- Date of Birth: 20/04/2003
- Current Club: PSV Eindhoven
- Career: OH Leuven (Y), Club Brugge (Y), KV Mechelen (Y), RSC Anderlecht (Y), PSV Eindhoven
- Position: Right Winger
- Secondary Positions: Left Winger, Striker
- Preferred Foot: Left
Johan Bakayoko played 45 minutes as a left winger in Ruud van Nistelrooy’s 4-2-3-1. The Belgian player appeared as the natural replacement for Chelsea’s Nodi Madueke and showed flashes of pure talent. Unfortunately, Mauro Junior’s sending-off forced PSV’s coach to make a tactical change and Bakayoko was substituted – surprisingly, considering his performance – to make way for Max and rebalance the outnumbered visitors.
Bakayoko is an athlete who possesses remarkable leg strength. We are talking about an explosive footballer, 179 centimetres tall, who makes speed and a low centre of gravity his trademarks. From an athletic point of view, his ability to accelerate in short portions of the field cannot escape him, allowing him to outrun his opponent with ease.
He is already a technically gifted footballer for the category: he has effective dribbling and can outrun you by taking the inside of the field, but also the outside of the field. Bakayoko is hardly predictable or containable, proving to be a key player in unhinging any formation tactically.
Despite only playing 45 minutes against FC Emmen, Bakayoko showed that he is a player with multiple dimensions within the competition. He often tends to play on the touchline and proceeds to isolate the opposing full-back, to try to bring him to one-on-one and dribble past him. When he is rapped, he does not panic and seeks more of a dialogue with his teammate, avoiding losing the ball. What struck me about Bakayoko is how effective he is and how correct he often is in the choices he makes. Bakayoko is an associative footballer, he exploits the one-two with his teammate to guarantee himself more space for action. He also does not disdain to move into spaces and playing on the edge of offside, proving to be a footballer who is not lazy and good at interpreting the different phases of the match. In the match against Emmen, however, he showed that he had gaps: Bakayoko is not a goalscorer and in the 45 minutes played he squandered a great chance on the counter-attack. He tends to take too long to finish, especially if he gets the ball on his right foot. Also, he’s a player who needs to improve his passing accuracy and improve his vision.
Rating – A2
The transfer of Nodi Madueke has thrown PSV Eindhoven into a situation where they have to rebuild from a technical point of view, especially in light of the sale of Cody Gakpo. Johan Bakayoko represents a viable alternative to the English player and his level is Eredivisie. The talented Belgian is still an imperfect player, but his ability to create numerical superiority and his effective dribbling make him one of the most interesting attacking players, currently and not only in perspective, in the entire Eredivisie.
Jarrad Branthwaite
Player profile:
- Nationality: England
- Age: 20
- Date of Birth: 27/06/2002
- Current Club: PSV Eindhoven (on loan from FC Everton)
- Career: Carlisle United, FC Everton, Blackburn (L)
- Position: Centre Back
- Preferred Foot: Left
In a very complicated match for PSV Eindhoven, Jarrad Branthwaite showed a strong personality and leadership in leading the defence of Ruud van Nistelrooy’s team. The central defender, on loan from Everton, played the entire match alongside Obispo in the visitors’ defeat.
Branthwaite is a long-limbed central defender who stands 195 centimetres tall. He is predominantly left-footed and tends never to use his right foot. This sometimes causes him to lose valuable game time by building up from the defence. He is an extremely physical footballer, who tries to win the fight thanks to his size and aggressiveness. Although not very quick, Branthwaite is not easily caught with space behind him and knows how to use his body to avoid being beaten at speed.
Defensively, Branthwaite is relentless in aerial play and wins every second ball in the box. He has good vision in reading opponents’ passes and conclusions, making himself a reliable defensive centre-back even when his own rearguard is not organized and he is forced to give personal readings to the action.
The defender on loan from Everton has a decent vision and has the personality to try to outrun the opposing defence with a long ball. Despite being a bit cumbersome in his movements, Brathwaite does not shy away from advancing with the ball on his feet and breaking the opponents’ pressing lines. It’s not exactly a work of art to see him advance in possession, but most of the time he is effective.
I would like to emphasize how he is a considerable threat in the opposing area. Branthwaite, not only possesses excellent header qualities, but he is very good at clearing and reading where the ball ends up in dead-ball situations.
Rating – B1
Branthwaite is a reliable defender who adds important physical traits to his team: dominance on aerial balls and crucial solidity in tackles. He is also an excellent asset in starting the action and best marries the characteristics required by a bottom-up buildup.
However, I believe, that you need to work on this player’s agility if you want to see him establish himself at a higher level. Also, it is necessary to rough out his right foot, which Branthwaite rarely uses, as he does not feel confident with it.
Target Scouting 
Haruki Murakami… Sounds familiar. 🙂
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