Man Utd and Liverpool linked striker has better conversion rate than Lionel Messi
According to various internet sources, including Sky Sports News, Sevilla striker Carlos Bacca could be on his way to the Premier League, with Manchester United and Liverpool leading the race for his signature. After his heroics inspired Sevilla to their second successive Europa League crown last season, the Colombian is hot property across the continent.
Bacca, who scored 20 goals in 37 appearances last term, is under contract at Sevilla until June 2018. However, according to the his agent, any interested club will have to fork out £21.5 million – his reported release clause – if they wish to sign him; a seemingly small price to pay if he were to continue his goal scoring form at his new club.
Carlos Bacca – Goals by Body Part 2014/15 (via Squawka.com)
At 28 years of age, Bacca’s desire to move to pastures new seems clear, and after a fruitful spell with Sevilla, it seems likely that he will leave the club this summer. Whether or not a Premier League side can capitalise on his current situation remains to be seen, but the back pages seem content with emphasising speculation linking him to Manchester United and Liverpool.
What would he bring to Liverpool or Manchester United?
When it comes to scoring goals, Bacca averages just under a one every two games for Sevilla. Indeed, throughout his two year spell with the Spanish outfit he has scored 34 times in 71 league appearances. Prior to this, he had amassed an impressive 28 strikes in 45 Belgian top flight fixtures for Club Brugge. He also boasts 17 Europa League goals (38 apps) from his time with either club.
However, the most impressive stats emerge from his most recent league campaign with Sevilla (2014/15), during which he found the net with a greater percentage of his shots than the other four La Liga players to score 20 times or more – Lionel Messi, Neymar, Antoine Griezmann and Cristiano Ronaldo. Meanwhile, throughout the same period, he proved significantly more prolific than anyone at Old Trafford or Liverpool.
With a shot conversion rate of 29%, Bacca proved more prolific than each of La Liga’s leading goal-scorers last season (via Sky Sports).
As described by Adam Bate, of Sky Sports, “Pace is a key quality and his fondness for breaking the offside trap means he stretches defences. Bacca is not a link man – a pass completion rate below 70 per cent is indicative of that – but he might offer the harrying that Liverpool missed without Luis Suarez.”
His ability to create space for others, stretching the opposition defensive line, would prove the perfect solution to Liverpool’s attacking woes, while offering a solution to a certain lack of imagination upfront at Old Trafford. What is more, a player of Bacca’s temperament would prove a continual menace off the ball, allowing his supporting midfielders to take a foothold on the game.
The Colombian is incredibly hard working, a proven goalscorer – the statistics are enough to display this – and ultimately he possesses the ability (and playing style) to make a real impact at either Manchester United or Liverpool. The two North West clubs will face stiff competition when it comes to securing his services, but he certainly looks worth the gamble.
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