Leeds United are back in the Premier League and director of football Victor Orta will have been busy identifying the areas that most need improving.
There is no questioning Pablo Hernandez’s role in helping end United’s 16-year wait to return to the top flight, having finished as the club’s top assist-provider in each of his four seasons at the club.
The Spaniard made some especially important contributions during the final run-in, and brought the kind of talismanic quality to Elland Road that even surpassed the expectations that came from his background at Valencia and the Spanish national team.
Upgrading on ‘El Mago’ is almost certainly out of the question at Leeds, but the time has come to think about a long-term successor to his throne. He’ll be turning 36 next season, and while he can undoubtedly still provide moments of magic when fit and firing, he’s beginning to slow down.
Knocks saw him sidelined for 10 of United’s 46 Championship games last season, while after lockdown Marcelo Bielsa only opted to use him as a lethal impact substitute, only starting once promotion had been secured.
It appears as though Orta and co are beginning to think about a future beyond Hernandez, if media reports are to be believed. According to The Independent , Leeds are keeping a close eye on Norwich City’s Emiliano Buendia.
The Argentinian fits the bill in terms of the role he plays. In the absence of Hernandez, Leeds lack an out-and-out playmaker and have often struggled to find the incision and creativity required to carve out openings.
But would the Argentinian be a good fit at Leeds, and how does he compare to Hernandez in terms of the underlying data? Here are their statistics compared.
All data is via WhoScored.com unless otherwise stated.
Goals and Assists
The two players were streets apart in terms of goals last season.
Buendia scored just once for the beleaguered Canaries, notching their only post-lockdown goal as they limply finished bottom with a run of nine consecutive defeats.
The 23-year-old even drew criticism from his manager Daniel Farke for his lack of end product, eventually opening his tally against West Ham United in July, making it just one goal from 2,465 minutes on the pitch.
Hernandez, by contrast, scored nine goals, including three from his last five appearances, averaging a goal every 278 minutes.
It is worth noting the difference in context, with Norwich the lowest-scoring side in the top flight last year, finishing a distant bottom, while Hernandez featured in a dominant, front-foot Leeds side that eventually finished as champions with a 10-point lead over second place.
In that context, Buendia registered a respectable tally of seven assists, averaging one every 352 minutes in the top flight. Only 10 players in the division managed more, and Buendia had a direct hand in 30% of their goals.
Hernandez, meanwhile, registered nine assists, one every 278 minutes, giving him a direct hand in 23% of the Championship championship’s 77 goals last term.
In the 2018/19 Championship season, Buendia and Hernandez recorded similar individual figures as Norwich pipped Leeds to promotion.
Hernandez registered a combined 24 goals and assists (12 apiece) as Leeds finished third, averaging one every 146 minutes.
For Championship-topping Norwich, Buendia scored eight goals and registered 12 assists, a combined tally of 20, averaging a direct contribution every 143 minutes.
Attacking Statistics
In the Championship last term, Hernandez created 86 chances (via BeInSports ), averaging a chance created every 30 minutes.
Buendia, meanwhile, created 83 chances in the Premier League (via Squawka ) - an impressive tally amid Norwich’s woes. Only Kevin De Bruyne, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Jack Grealish created more chances than the Norwich man, who averaged one every 29 minutes.
That fits with their key passes statistics - the final pass before a team-mate shoots at goal - both players averaged 2.3 per match in 2019/20.
Buendia tends to carry the ball more than Hernandez, averaging 2.8 dribbles completed per match last season in comparison to the United man’s average of 1.1. He drew 1.5 fouls per match (in comparison 0.6 for Hernandez) but lost possession a lot more often, getting dispossessed 2.2 times per game (compared to 0.8 times per game from Hernandez).
Passing
Hernandez was a more prolific passer of the ball in the Championship last season, averaging 53.1 passes per game to Buendia’s 39.1, but that’s likely a natural byproduct of being a possession-focused, dominant side in the second tier.
The Canaries playmaker actually had a slightly tidier pass completion rate, averaging 80%, in comparison to 77% from Hernandez.
