Using data to identify the next big wingers
Here are 25 wide forwards having a good start to 2023-2024
Everyone loves a winger. They’re fast, twitchy, technical and dynamic.
Do Arsenal need another wide player? That’s up for debate. But that’s never stopped me from throwing guys into a list, has it?
Here’s the deal:
This list is created relying fully on statistics from this season. It’s early! Expect this to change quite a bit from now to spring, as per usual.
Please note this data was pulled prior to this past weekend’s games. With so many games it can be tough to keep up, so you’ve got to pick a day and go with it!
The minutes mark is still low for many players. I required 8.0 90s, or 720 minutes, of league play to qualify for this rank. My usual normal is 900. So there could be some guys lurking in the high-600-minute realm ready to appear later.
I generally aimed toward pre-prime or early prime, so again you’ll find no 28+ players here.
These guys don’t all do exactly the same role. Some are touchline wingers, others play farther inside. But they’re all in my “wide forward” family, meaning a guy who’s generally up front and not down the middle.
I always encourage a healthy dose of the eye test before forming a final opinion on any player, so consume responsibly.
There is obviously a subjective element to any man-made formulaic ranking. But for the record, these rankings are based on performance across 18 statistics, each with different weight toward the final score.
All scores are subject to an adjustment according to league strength, so you shouldn’t have to mentally raise or lower rankings to make it more “fair.”
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