Enzo Fernandez V Jorginho: Who Is The Better Player? We Take A Look At The Stats

David Tully

1 year ago

Categories: Chelsea News, Galleries, Transfer News

Tags: Arsenal, Chelsea, Enzo Fernandez, jorginho

With Jorginho having joined Arsenal on deadline day and Enzo Fernandez having taken his place at Stamford Bridge, we thought it was a good time to compare the two as we approach the middle of the season.

The British record fee the Blues paid for Fernandez is a lot to live up to, so it is interesting to see where his strengths and weaknesses lie in contrast to Jorginho who joined Chelsea for a fraction of what it took to bring his fellow midfielder to West London.

For this post, we will be using statistics from their performances in the league this season to see which is the better player.

Press the next page as we compare the midfielders (based on stats from FBRef).

Progressive Passes

Despite playing in pretty much identical positions, Fernandez has averaged nearly double the number of progressive passes that Jorginho has managed.

In layman’s terms, a progressive pass is a ball that moves ten yards forward or one that is made in the oppositions’ penalty box.

Fernandez’s figure is 9.55 per 90 minutes this season, compared to Jorginho’s 4.86, meaning the Argentinian international is much more positive in possession.

Passes In The Final Third/Into The Penalty Box

These two metrics give us a slightly better gauge than progressive passes as to how threatening Fernandez and Jorginho are in the attacking third of the pitch.

In terms of final third passes this campaign, the Argentine once again is superior, executing 11.9 per 90 to Jorginho’s 6.13.

The Italian international also trails Fernandez when it comes to activity in the penalty box, averaging 0.63 passes per 90 within the 18-yard area to his counterpart’s 2.01.

Key Passes And Expected Assists

These stats provide the best indication in regards to the two players’ creativity on the ball. A key pass is the ball before the shot, while expected assists (xA) give a value for every shot assisted and its likelihood of it being scored.

When we look at key passes, Fernandez (1.95 per 90) is clearly better at setting up chances than Jorginho (0.49), based on their performances in their respective domestic leagues this season.

It is a similar situation with xA, as the World Cup winner averages 0.34 expected assists per game, with the Italian (0.03) trailing well behind.

Tackles And Interceptions

While Fernandez is clearly more active in the attacking third of the pitch, it is a different situation in terms of defensive numbers, where Jorginho’s qualities become apparent.

For Chelsea this season, the 31-year-old has been averaging 4.44 tackles and interceptions by 90 minutes in the Premier League.

Fernandez, in contrast, has only managed 3.57 per 90 in the Portuguese Primeira Liga. One thing to note here, though, is that Benfica do usually have a lot of possession so their midfield may not be called on to defend as often.

Dribbled Past Frequency

Jorginho has often been criticised for his lack of pace, and this is usually borne out in the number of times he is dribbled past per game.

It is interesting to see that Fernandez has been dribbled past only slightly less often (1.36 per 90) than Jorginho (1.62) this campaign, which suggests there isn’t a lot of difference between the two on this defensive metric.

In conclusion then, it is clear that Fernandez is (by a distance) a bigger threat in possession than Jorginho, although the Italian is arguably better off the ball.