Pirlo The Complete Midfield Package



It’s easy to forget, but prior to joining Juventus in 2011, Andrea Pirlo was in danger of becoming forgotten man. Considered past his best by many after a making his lowest number of Serie A appearances for ten years, Milan allowed him to leave for free, believing it wouldn’t come back to hurt them.
How wrong they were, as the midfielder experienced a second coming, transforming Juve’s fortunes and pulling the strings in their first officially recognised Serie A title win since 2003. The playmaker then capped that off by orchestrating a surprise Italy run to the final of Euro 2012, confirming Pirlo once again as one of the finest midfielders on the planet.
Now, with younger players like Paul Pogba beginning to make an impression with the Old Lady and a perceived cooling in the relationship between Antonio Conte and Pirlo, rumours are beginning to circulate that he won’t renew his imminently expiring contract that, as it stands, will allow him to walk for free in 2014.
Those rumours further suggest that Juve could opt to sell him in January, with Arsenal and Manchester United monitoring his situation. Pirlo will turn 35 next year, so if Juve would be willing to sell him, does it mean they think he is no longer capable of hitting the high standards that saw him return to the top in 2012? It’s worth taking a look at his performances post-2012 in comparison to that golden year to find out.
Pirlo's statistical performance in the 2011/12 season for Juve was excellent. The veteran played 3318 minutes for his side, starting 37 Serie A games and only being taken off in two. His passing accuracy averaged out at a very Pirlo-like 86.8 per cent, while he created an average of three goal-scoring chances per game.
The midfielder lost an average of 11 balls per-game, but recovered 10, showing how rarely he was wasteful in possession. Crucially, he provided 13 assists, winning 59 per cent of the games he played in.
So how about last season? Well, Pirlo’s Serie A playing time did reduce significantly, dropping to 2858 minutes on the pitch. His number of starts also dropped down to 32, though he was only taken off once. The good news is that his passing accuracy was actually slightly higher, sitting at 87.26 per cent, while the three chances he created per-game show he was just as effective at feeding his team-mates.

His balls recovered per-game stayed consistent at an average of nine, while he even managed to improve upon the number of balls he lost, giving away only 10. His assist count went down to seven, but considering the chances he created stayed at the same level, the wastefulness of his team-mates could be blamed for the reduction in assists compared to the previous year. His win ratio raised to 75 per cent.
Those figures show that last year Pirlo was still achieving the heady heights of his first year at Juventus, continuing to create a consistent number of chances for his team-mates and passing extremely accurately. Moreover, he even managed to improve in one area, losing slightly less possession than the previous year.

So why would Juve consider selling him this year? That isn’t clear, as his stats this season to date show little change. The source of his personal unhappiness is pretty obvious, however, as though the 2013/14 Serie A campaign is only four games old, and despite starting every one of those, Pirlo has already been taken off twice, as many times as he was subbed in the entire 2011/12 season.
His passing accuracy sits at an incredible high 91 per cent after those four games, though so far he has only managed to create an average of two goal-scoring chances per game. The number of balls he has recovered is currently sitting at an average of seven per game, while the number he lost sits at six, meaning he has actually won possession back more than he has lost it. He has failed to make a single assist.
Evidently, it is still too early in the season to draw any major conclusions, but after four games Pirlo’s passing is clearly still up to standard, being particularly efficient in possession and doing a good job of winning it back when Juve lose the ball.
The number of chances he has created is down from the last two seasons, as is his number of assists, but it's worth keeping in mind that he has been taken off in half of the games he has played this season and could yet go on to provide a number of assists in the coming games to bring his average back up.
Despite that slight dip, looking at his performance as a whole, Pirlo would still be a gift for either United, so Juve’s loss would certainly be their gain.
United supporters, would you like to see Pirlo join your club in January ? Let us know below...