da esport bet： This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
da lvbet： Riyad Mahrez arrived with great expectation when he joined Manchester City for a then-club record fee of £60m. His astonishing time at Leicester City established him as of the best talents around and the fact he was recently included on the Ballon d’Or shortlist speaks volumes about his standing in the game.
However, the Algerian, with his tricky nature on the wings, struggled to adapt to his new surroundings in his opening season. Man City fans were far from overwhelmed and there were even suggestions that a greedy attitude was serving as a hindrance to the side.
Although, this season, statistics from Understat have shown there might be a significant stylistic tweak.
Last season, the former Leicester man averaged just 1.62 key passes per Premier League game but has seen this rise to an impressive 3.99. Also, his shots per 90 minutes has gone from 3.65 and 2.99, which suggests he is placing a greater emphasis on creativity rather than finding the net.
Perhaps Pep Guardiola has directly altered his style of play this season but the arrival of Rodri is also pertinent to note here. Mahrez was the club-record signing last season, the man of whom so much was expected, a player who was so desperate to impress that he even took the responsibility of taking a late penalty at Anfield in an early season title decider. We all know what happened next.
But the signing of Rodri has naturally taken the limelight away from the Algeria international and, with a year’s worth of experience at City under his belt, he appears to be more comfortable with his surroundings and emulating the type of form that stunned English football during his time at Leicester.
However, despite his clear increase in creativity, Mahrez has still managed to pitch in with goals for the Premier League champions.
The return of Kevin De Bruyne, a player who was absent for the majority of the previous campaign, also appears to have sparked an improvement. The two creative players have linked up very well for Guardiola throughout the season so far down the right-hand channel, teasing and tantalising with their nimble-footed and intricate creativity.
De Bruyne has a tendency to drift into the right channel and whip balls into the box and his presence appears to be having a profound impact on the quality of Mahrez’s output.
It seems City are finally seeing the calibre of player they thought they were getting at the beginning of the previous campaign.