You would be forgiven for forgetting that Arnaut Danjuma has played Premier League football already.
He started a meagre six league games during Bournemouth’s failed battle against relegation last season. In 700 minutes of top-flight action, he did not register a single goal involvement.
But a lot can change in nine months.
Ten goals and four assists later, albeit in the Sky Bet Championship, Danjuma is showing there’s every chance he’ll be back in the big time next season.
With or without Bournemouth.
How good is Arnaut Danjuma?
The Vitality Stadium hasn’t exactly been the most stable of environments over the past year.
After the close-season departure of Eddie Howe came the expected departures of high-earning stars. The mid-season sacking of assistant-turned-manager Jason Tindall was followed by the short-term appointment of caretaker boss Jonathan Woodgate in a bid to scrape into the play-offs.
Failure to secure an immediate top-flight return will almost certainly mean another exodus. Danjuma will undoubtedly be a target.
What is expected goals (xG)?
- Expected goals (xG) is a metric that measures the quality of any given scoring opportunity
- Expected assists (xA) is the expected goals created by a player for teammates
His 14 goal involvements are mightily impressive, especially when taking expected goals (xG) into consideration.
His 10 league goals from 5.58 xG is an outstanding over performance, and suggests he could well be an even greater threat in a team of better quality players.
It also begs the question of where would the Cherries be without him.
Among team-mates, only top-scorer Dominic Solanke ranks above Danjuma when it comes to non-penalty expected goal involvements.
He is indispensable.
What kind of player is he?
Looking specifically at Danjuma’s attacking numbers, we can see he’s a high volume dribbler.
He averages 3.86 progressive runs and 7.54 dribbles per 90 mins (48% success rate), ranking among the highest in the Championship.
Furthermore, he engages in 13.66 offensive duels per 90, so not only does he dribble and progress the ball up the pitch, but he also regularly attempts to beat his man.
This directness and desire to be a scorer rather than a provider is further evidenced by his low average of just 1.53 crosses per 90 minutes. At just 22% success rate, it’s simply not his game, although that’s not to say it can’t be improved.
And as we know, he is well capable of end product.
His non-penalty expected goal involvements (NPxGI) of 0.38 per 90 minutes again puts him among the best wingers in the second tier.
In theory, it means he should have more than one goal or assist every three games.
Who should try and sign him?
Looking at teams who engage in a lot of dribbles and take-ons, there are three obvious fits — Wolves, Crystal Palace and Fulham. Only Manchester City rank higher than these clubs for such dribbling metrics.
Although Wolves lost Diogo Jota to Liverpool in the summer, they still have Adama Traore, Pedro Neto and Daniel Podence, all of whom have a similar profile to Danjuma.
However, with Wolves, there is a need to be defensively solid out of possession and this is an area he would require improvement, as he currently only engages in 2.33 defensive duels per 90.
Wilfred Zaha is constantly linked with a move away from Palace, and there are definitely similarities between him and Danjuma.
Both like to play from the left and come inside into the half space. They’re both high volume dribblers with >0.35 xGI per 90, and they’re also both relieved of defensive duty and given the license to stay forward.
With two years left on his contract at Selhurst Park there could be plenty more talk about Zaha’s future this summer. Should he leave, Danjuma would certainly be a good replacement.
But the club that really sticks out is Fulham.
They signed Ademola Lookman on loan from RB Leipzig in the summer and he’s been one of their best players this season.
Similar in profile to Danjuma and Zaha, he is a right-footer who plays from the left, and averages very similar numbers.
It is looking increasingly likely that Lookman will return to Leipzig in the summer, whether Fulham stay up or not, so regardless, they could be shopping for a new left winger.
It could just so happen that a strong season in the Championship, to prove his top-flight quality, actually gets Danjuma another season... in the Championship. But Fulham won’t be the only club in the queue.
And there’s still the matter of that Bournemouth play-off push, too.
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