Manuel Veth - Leroy Sané was outstanding against his youth club Schalke. Not just in the second leg but also in the first leg when he scored a fantas
Manuel Veth –
Leroy Sané was outstanding against his youth club Schalke. Not just in the second leg but also in the first leg when he scored a fantastic freekick to level the score 2-2 paving the way for City to win the game late 3-2 thanks to a goal by Raheem Sterling with just moments to go.
For Schalke Sané’s goal, in particular, was devastating. Surprisingly, die Knappen, who have fallen into the relegation zone of the Bundesliga in recent weeks managed to stay in that match for most of the game running the sort of winning streak one experience in an NJ online casinos for real money experience.
Experience Champions League football live! Book your European football travel now by visiting Nickes.com!
On came Leroy Sané in the 78′ minute, and in the 85′ minute, the score was overturned. That freekick displayed just one aspect of Sané’s many talents. The winger has a fantastic shooting technique that allows him to score spectacular freekick goals.
Leroy Sané – Champions League Records
That, however, is not his biggest strength. In fact, the full range of his strengths was on display in Manchester City’s return game against Schalke. In City’s 7-0 win Leroy Sané was the best player on the pitch and was voted man of the match by the Futbolgrad Network. In the game Sané set several new records:
- Sané is the first player in the current Champions League campaign to be directly involved in four goals (one goal, three assists) in a single game.
- Sané is the first German player to score in three consecutive Champions League games since Marco Reus in 2015 (four games in a row).
It is not just the Champions League that Leroy Sané has impressed in this season. The 23-year-old native of Essen, Germany has managed eight goals and seven assists, which ranks him 13th in the league overall with 15 scorer points and seventh in the league in assists only according to the stats homepage Wyscout, in 25 English Premier League games this season. Scoring a goal every 191 minutes Sané can chip in goals and has been a consistent provider to the likes of his attacking partner Kun Agüero.
Leroy Sané of Manchester City takes the ball past Ralf Faehrmann of FC Schalke 04 and scores a goal which is later ruled offsideduring the UEFA Champions League Round of 16 Second Leg match between Manchester City v FC Schalke 04 at Etihad Stadium on March 12, 2019 in Manchester, England. (Photo by Stu Forster/Getty Images)
Against Schalke, one could spot the ability to make both dangerous runs weaving into the centre to finish off runs himself but also the ability to make his teammates shine. The best example was the curled across the box cross from the left to the right that was hammered home by Sterling in the second half.
That cross was so well timed that the referee had initially waved the goal off. A finely balanced cross so perfect that it was impossible to imagine that Leroy Sané had not sent the ball across into an illegal offside position. But VAR verified that Leroy Sané had somehow defied the impossible and the goal stood.
Those kinds of attacks are impossible to defend — whether you are Schalke or any other side. After all, Sané has managed to complete 26.5% of his on average 3.55 crosses per game.
Leroy Sané – The €100 million man
With those stats in mind, it is no surprise, therefore, that Sané’s Transfermarkt value has skyrocketed from €30 million to €100 million since he has joined Manchester City in the summer of 2016. At that price, he is now the most valuable German national team player on the planet and almost 12 months after Joachim Löw decided not to take Leroy Sané to Russia the 23-year-old has now become the face of a Germany rebuild.
In fact, not going to Russia may have been the best thing that could have happened to Leroy Sané. Ultimately, Löw will always be criticised for not taking the winger to the tournament after Germany crashed out of the group stage following a bitter defeat to South Korea on matchday 3 of the tournament.
Whether Sané would have made a difference, however, is questionable. His playing time would have been limited, and the attacking winger did not really suit the system that Löw had in place at the time. It is a system. However, that has seen a major overhaul in recent weeks with Löw making the drastic decision to no longer call up long-standing national team players Jérôme Boateng, Mats Hummels and Thomas Müller to the squad.
With Müller gone, in particular, Germany will now operate with three fast attacking players up front. Furthermore, instead of possession Löw will focus on quick transition play which would favour Sané. Finally, Germany lack attacking wingers that can take on defenders in one-v-one situations a role that Sané without a doubt can fulfil as Germany look to reclaim their spot in the world elite of football.
Leroy Sané has that ability. This season he has completed 70% of his 7.81 dribble attempts per 90 minutes. It is an outstanding value for a player, who aged 23 seems to have no limits when it comes to his development, whether it is at Manchester City or at the German national team.
Manuel Veth is the owner and Editor in Chief of the Futbolgrad Network. He also works as a freelance journalist and among others contributes to Forbes.com and Pro Soccer USA. He holds a Doctorate of Philosophy in History from King’s College London, and his thesis is titled: “Selling the People’s Game: Football’s transition from Communism to Capitalism in the Soviet Union and its Successor States,” which is available HERE. Originally from Munich, Manuel has lived in Amsterdam, Kyiv, Moscow, Tbilisi, London, and currently is located in Victoria BC, Canada. Follow Manuel on Twitter @ManuelVeth.
COMMENTS