After Bafana Bafana striker Evidence Makgopa showed potential of becoming a good striker for the nation at AFCON, Kickoff assesses his stats compared to similar forward, Nigerian Victor Osimhen, on where he needs to improve.
Osimhen did not light up the tournament as many expected, as he arrived with the status of being the reigning African Footballer of the Year.
However, the Napoli forward's influence led the Super Eagles to the final and with Makgopa having a room to improve, it's fitting to compare his performance with a similar striker playing his club football at the highest level.
READ | Broos determined to solve Zwane problem
The Orlando Pirates forward was thrown in at the deep end after Lyle Foster withdrew from the Bafana's Afcon squad and Lebohang Mothiba was ruled out due to injury.
"It was not only Lyle, then you lose Lebo also, two of your standard strikers you lose just before you start Afcon, so it was not a good situation. At the other side and I've said it a few times, I have confidence in Evidence, he can become a very good striker," Bafana head coach Hugo Broos said of Makgopa to the South African media before they left Ivory Coast.
Makgopa had a slow start but grew in the tournament, as he scored a crucial goal against Morocco in a 2-0 win in the round of 16, following up on one assist he got in a 4-0 win over Namibia.
In comparison to Osimhen, the Nigerian forward also had one goal and one assist, from the same number of matches as the Pirates striker, seven.
However, it is what he does in and around the box where his stats stood out compared to Makgopa, ans according to Whoscored.com, Osimhen averaged 4,6 aerial duels won per game, using his physical strength and height to his advantage.
The South African forward has similar attributes but averaged 2,9 aerial duels won. Makgopa also does not take enough shots in a game, as he averaged 1,7 shots per game compared to 3,4 per game by Osimhen.
Makgopa is also not involved enough in the box, as he averaged 0,7 shots per game in the penalty area while Osimhen averaged 2,1 shots per game around the penalty area.
However, the Bafana striker had a decent tournament, as he was rated 6.69 out of 10 while the Nigerian striker was rated 7 out of 10 by respected statistics website Whoscored.com.
You must be SIGNED IN to read and post comments.
Click HERE to register!