Smith Rowe V Raphinha V Torres: Who Would Be The Better Signing For Chelsea? We Take A Look At The Numbers

Chelsea are weighing up moves for Arsenal forward Emile Smith Rowe, as well as Barcelona pair Raphinha and Ferran Torres, according to the Daily Mail.

In this post, we will be comparing the three wingers, using their statistics from FBRef going back as far as the data will go.

Even though it may not give us a complete picture, there is enough information to provide us with a good comparison of the three players and how they would perform if they made the move to Stamford Bridge, ahead of Friday’s deadline.

Press the next page as we look at the stats of Smith Rowe, Raphinha and Torres to determine who would be the better signing for the Blues.

Shots Per 90

This may not be one of the most obvious stats to assess but it is an important one in terms of Chelsea’s threat in the final third. The Blues have simply not scored enough goals in recent years, and players need to be brought in to change that.

It may seem self-evident but the more shots a player has, the more likely he is to score, so it is good to focus on who gets the most shots on goal per 90 minutes.

On this metric, Raphinha is the winner by quite some distance, averaging 2.74 per 90.

Ferran Torres is slightly behind his current Barcelona teammate (2.20 per 90), but Smith Rowe is a distant third (1.58 per 90).

Goals And Assists

Considering what we know about shots per 90, you would think that there would be a straight correlation in terms of goals but the gaps between the three narrow considerably when we assess goals per 90.

Raphinha has averaged 0.29 goals per 90 minutes in his career to date. That’s the exact same as Torres, while Smith Rowe is only slightly less prolific (0.26).

The trio are equally hard to separate when we go through the assist data. Raphinha is ahead (0.20 per 90) but only marginally.

Smith Rowe (0.19) and Torres (0.18) are fractionally behind when creating goals for their teammates.

Key Passes

Of course, a player’s effectiveness and creativity cannot simply be measured in goals and assists, other numbers can also give us an indication as to their contributions on the pitch.

Key passes (the pass before a shot) is another important metric that can provide us with information about how a player performs in the final third.

Once more, Raphinha (2.20 per 90 minutes) is superior, with Smith Rowe (1.71 per 90) coming second in the rankings.

Torres (1.17 per 90), meanwhile, is certainly far less inclined to set up his teammates.

Progressive Carries

In addition to passing and shooting stats, being able to carry the ball and take the game to the opposition is a key part of a forward’s role.

A progressive carry is where a player keeps possession inside the opposition half and takes the ball at least 10 yards forward towards the opponent’s goal.

Wingers generally do more of this than central midfielders and strikers, and  Raphinha (3.34 per 90) again is the winner in this category.

It should be noted, however, that Smith Rowe (3.17 per 90) and Torres (2.90 per 90) are no slouches in this area either.

Take-ons

In addition to keeping possession and moving the ball forward, being able to take on and successfully get past an opposition defender is important for any striker/winger.

Raphinha has managed 2.02 successful take-ons per 90 minutes over the last six years, compared to Torres’s 1.65 per 90 and Smith Rowe’s 1.40 per 90.

In conclusion then, it is clear who the best signing is based on the numbers. Raphinha wins in all five categories we have looked at.

The Brazilian is effective in taking on opponents, creating goals for teammates as well as finishing off chances himself.