We round off the series of top ten key passers articles by taking a look at Ligue 1. Six of the top seven clubs were represented here, with Rennes the only club to miss out. Some great performances lower down the division have already resulted in some of our featured ten being snapped up by teams further up the table, with champions Lille already snapping up the likes of Dimitri Payet and Benoît Pedretti moving this close season. Here’s a look at the best ten creators from last term:
Nenê’s 3.43 Key Passes per game stood head and shoulders above any other player in France’s top division as the left winger created chance after chance for PSG in an ultimately disappointing campaign that saw the club finish fourth. Compared to our top ten, it wasn’t just Key Passes that saw Nenê stand out- he was best here for Shots, Goals and Crosses, and with a second place for Successful Dribbles, the superb performances saw the left winger pick up 13 whoscored.com Man of the Match awards and a rating of 7.67 per game, the best in Ligue 1.
Nenê made 120 Key Passes for PSG and picked up 9 Assists, a ratio of 1 Assist for every 13.33 Key Passes made. His 2.9 Crosses per game were a constant source of danger from the left flank, though this may account for a slightly average 71% Pass Accuracy, with opposition back-fours able to snuff out the danger. Nenê’s 2.6 Shots per game brought about 14 goals, and given that PSG’s two main strikers managed 17 goals between them, his contribution was clearly vital.
His 1.7 Successful Dribbles were crucial to PSG, as the side suffered from a severe lack of trickery last term; their second best first-team player, Ludovic Guily, managed a mere 0.4. It’s little wonder the new Qatari owners have wasted little time in their summer spending spree as the club prepare to wrestle the title from Lille’s grasp.
The displays of Dimitri Payet for St Etienne last term have already brought about a move to champions Lille this summer, as the club prepare for the reportedly imminent departure of Gervinho to Arsenal. The right winger made the majority of his 33 appearances in St Etienne’s 4-1-4-1 set up, though he occasionally featured wide left as an inverted winger.
Payet’s 13 Goals for the tenth-placed side caught the headlines but his creativity was equally impressive. With the help of set-pieces, Payet made 2.58 Key Passes per game, a total of 85 for the season, but his ability to make chances was not reflected in his Assists, with just 3 to show for his efforts. This means he grabbed 1 Assist per 28.33 Key Passes- better finishing from team mates would have given his stats the boost they undoubtedly deserved.
All the more impressive here is the fact that Payet made just 28.6 Passes per game and still managed to wreak havoc with his distribution. An average of 1.6 Crosses, 2.2 Long Balls and 0.5 Through Balls highlight the variety of his passing and Payet also showed plenty skill on the ball, with 1.2 Successful Dribbles per game the joint-best for St Etienne, with his 2.3 Shots easily making him the most dangerous goal threat of his side, too.
A look at the stats of Eden Hazard shows just why the young Lille winger is so highly sought-after right now. Hazard made more Key Passes (2.55) and more Successful Dribbles (2.7) than any player for the champions as he terrorised defences on his way to 7 Goals and 10 Assists last season. Hazard made 97 Key Passes in Ligue 1 last term, which is an average of 1 Assist per 9.7 Key Passes.
An indication of how much more of the ball he saw in comparison to Gervinho on the opposite wing is shown by his 41.8 Passes per game to the Ivorian’s 22, almost double. He seemed content in setting up chances more than taking on a shot- Hazard averaged just 0.9 Shots per game but with his 7 Goals coming from just 34 Shots, it’s clear he’s something of a clinical finisher. A lowly 0.9 Crosses shows Hazard was prepared to take men on and cut inside rather than simply float a ball in from out wide.
Bordeaux’s Jaroslav Plasil earned the plaudits for a series of eye-catching displays and domestic interest is gathering this summer, with Lille and Lyon rumoured to be vying for his signature. Bordeaux played a 4-2-3-1 in 30 of their 38 league games and Plasil was afforded plenty creative license playing in the hole behind Anthony Modeste.
Plasil’s game is all about supplying the killer ball; a meagre 0.2 Successful Dribbles shows he’s not interested on going on mazy runs when in possession, instead preferring to set up a team mate, indicated by his 2.47 Key Passes per game- a total of 94 Key Passes for the season brought him a return of 12 Assists. Given that Bordeaux’s second best total for assists was 3, it’s clear how much they relied upon Plasil for inspiration. His 43.5 Passes per game back this up further; only Fernando (48.2),the defensive central midfielder made more, as Bordeaux look to get the ball to Plasil as much as possible.
Camel Meriem assisted 5 of Arles-Avignon’s paltry 21 Goals and was their stand-out player in a campaign that saw the club relegated bottom of the Bundesliga on 20 points. The playmaker won’t face the drop down to a lower division, though, as Nice have already secured his signature for next season.
Playing either in the hole or wide right as his side tried out nine different formations, Meriem averaged 2.31 Key Passes per game, for a total of 74 over the season. His 40.3 Passes per game was easily the most of the Arles-Avignon side, as was his Crosses (1.6) though his 0.7 Shots was relatively low, with just 2 Goals to his name last season.
Benoît Pedretti is yet another of our featured players who has moved clubs this close season, with a transfer from Auxerre to Lille as a replacement for Yohan Cabaye. A deep-lying playmaker in Auxerrre’s preferred 4-2-3-1 formation, Pedretti controlled play from in front of his own back four, making 59.1 Passes per game and playing an average 7.3 Long Balls as he looked to spark quick attacks.
Pedretti played only 20 games, with his campaign interrupted by an adductor muscle injury but managed 2.3 Key Passes per game, a total of 46 for the season. Set-piece duties boosted his Crosses (1.4) and Shots (1.2) per game as he picked up 5 Goals and 4 Assists, helping his side to a ninth-place finish.
Anthony Mounier was chief creator for Nice in a season that saw the club narrowly avoid relegation by just two points. Playing wide left in a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3, Mounier -helped by his free kicks and corners- made 2.18 Key Passes per game on his way assisting 11 of his club’s 33 league goals. A total of 74 Key Passes saw him grab 1 Assist per 6.72 Key Passes, the second highest of our featured Ligue 1 men.
The left winger made 1.7 Successful Dribbles per game, the most for his side by some distance and also floated in 1.9 Crosses per game, a thoroughly impressive output considering he made just 25.6 Passes per game, the least of our players here. Mounier also scored 3 Goals for Nice, averaging 1.1 Shots per game over his 34 appearances.
Marvin Martin’s 19 Assists was the highest total of any player in Europe’s top five leagues, as the man nicknamed “little Xavi” helped create the goals that fired Sochaux to a fifth-place finish. Over 37 games, Martin averaged 2.14 Key Passes for a total of 79 for the season. His 19 Assists means Martin picked up 1 Assist with every 4.15 Key Passes he made, the best ratio in our top ten and an indication of his ability to lay on clear-cut chances for team mates.
Playing in the hole behind a front two in a 4-1-2-1-2, Martin made 45.4 Passes, the most of any Sochaux player, as looked to break down opposition defences. His game is not based on trickery on the ball (he made only 0.7 Successful Dribbles per game) but with 1.6 Crosses and 3.5 Long Balls, he varied his distribution with equal success. Martin’s 82% Pass Accuracy is the best of the Ligue 1 top ten, further indication of his assuredness in possession. His shooting was something of a let down, though; Martin had 55 Shots for the season, but scored only 3 Goals.
Yoann Gourcuff’s debut season for Lyon following his move from Bordeaux last summer was blighted by injury and poor form. Playing in the hole in a 4-2-3-1, Gourcuff made more Passes (33) than the other attacking midfielders, Michel Bastos (25) and Jimmy Briand (21.1) and helped by set-pieces, Gourcuff managed 2.13 Key Passes on average over his 20 games, for a total of 51 Key Passes. He only picked up 4 Assists though, for an average of 1 Assist for every 12.75 Key Passes made.
Gourcuff’s 1.1 Successful Dribbles and 1.5 Shots per game, while not unimpressive, are not quite at the level expected of a player of his calibre and a return of 4 Assists and 3 Goals over his 20 appearances illustrates his inability to really stamp his authority on the Lyon side during his debut season.
The performances of Lucho González were pivotal to Marseille’s second-place Ligue 1 finish. Pulling the strings from central midfield in his side’s 4-3-3, the Argentine made 2.08 Key Passes per game over 36 games, for a total of 75. González made 41.6 Passes per game, more than any Marseille player, as the team looked to him to unlock opposition defences.
A 76% Pass Accuracy, combined with 1.4 Crosses and 1.2 Long Balls per game saw González picked up 6 Assists over the season and for a central midfielder, his 1.3 Shots per game was a reasonable return, as González found the net on 8 occasions from a total of 47 Shots, just less than 1 Goal every 6 Shots.
