The second deadline defender to sign Liverpool is Ozan Kabak, with Preston’s Ben Davies being the first. The Rote Schalke are reported to pay a loan fee of £ 2.5 million with an option to purchase £ 20 million in the summer. The Royal Blues want Arsenal defender Shkodran Mustafi to replace him.
Liverpool have reached a personal terms agreement with Ozan Kabak. Brokerage fee also agreed. 🔴 #LFC
Negotiations with Schalke continue – # S04 would like to include the purchase commitment and continue working for the replacement [Mustafi talks on].#LFC also have a plan B. ⏳ #DeadlineDay https://t.co/Ng7nulrSiR
– Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) February 1, 2021
The 20-year-old Schalke defender entered the Galatasaray youth academy at the age of 11 and signed his first professional contract six years later. After impressing in the Süper Lig with 12 starts and four Champions League games in the first half of the 2018/19 season, he was brought in from Stuttgart in Germany. He spent half a season there as a the Swabians was relegated, but the young defender impressed again in 15 league starts.
Kabak was then reassigned to the Bundesliga before the 2019/20 season when Schalke signed him for five years. In the 18 months that he spent in Gelsenkirchen, he played 40 league games and made his international debut in European Championship qualification as a teenager.
After being linked with a transfer in the summer, the Turkish defender is finally moving to England – specifically Liverpool -. So let’s take a look at why it’s rated so highly in Germany.
Play style
Kabak is a with the right foot Central defenderHe plays on the right side of the defense, of course, but has recently adjusted to the other side too. He’s adept at playing in both a back-four and a back-three, but the latter is unlikely to be used by Liverpool. He is too very good on the ball and physically strong. Overall, he’s very close to being a complete modern defenderand in terms of potential could even be compared with Virgil van Dijk.
He is certainly one of the most talented defenders of his time in Europe
-David Wagner, Kabak’s former manager at Schalke
Strengthen
Kabak is a man of many strengths. Let’s take a look at his first Air ability. With 60 antennas gained This season he counts 10th in the Bundesliga in this category. The Turkish defender also kept one Success rate from 83.33% in that regard this season. That’s why he’s posing one Air threat from set pieces also met five of his six career goals out of such situations and get 83.33% of his shots from such positions.
Then comes his Ability to play ball. Kabak averaged 61.2 touches per game completed this season 40.07 wears and covers 120.14 meters in progressive distance with it. In addition, the 20-year-old central defender did 49 passes per game with an accuracy of 87.9%. His Long pass completion rate from 70.9% is pretty high this season too, as is his 0.72 Shot generating actions per 90 for a defense attorney.
It has to be noted that while Kabak’s stats are by no means bad, they may still undercut his quality, having played for a relegation-threatened Schalke this season.
weaknesses
Kabak doesn’t have too many weaknesses, but his to make decisions can be suspicious at times. He’s done a lot this season Mistakes that lead to gunshotsGiven that in England he will be surrounded by experienced and vocal players like Jordan Henderson and Fabinho, this issue should once again be pushed out of his game.
Role in Liverpool
For the remainder of this season, Kabak will be tasked with throwing his way into the heart of the Liverpool defense, where he may work with Fabinho or Joël Matip (if the Dutchman is less injured). If he can really impress, Jürgen Klopp may even use him as an older central defender alongside his new colleague Ben Davies and release Fabinho to return to defensive midfield.
If Davies were a short-term stopgap, Kabak could turn out to be much more than that. At the moment it is only on loan from the Merseyside giants, but don’t be surprised if the option to buy is triggered in the summer due to its quality. In this case, he should give Joe Gomez a run for his money for the right central defender alongside van Dijk.
Conclusion
If everything goes according to plan, this signing could be considered one of the best in Liverpool’s recent history. Obviously, Van Dijk levels will be tough to attain, but Kabak undoubtedly has the knack for getting close to the world-class Dutch defender, especially when he supports him as a partner in the back.
For now, however, the Turkish defender has to concentrate on the task at hand – at least to take his own place in the Liverpool defense for the rest of the season. Should that be a success, Kabak’s £ 20million over the summer is an absolute bargain.
Statistics courtesy of Fbref.com and Whoscored.com
