A detailed statistical overview of Fernando Gago’s game

Fernando Gago has long been a subject of debate for people, especially Real Madrid fans. This season he has moved to Roma on Loan and seems to have done well. Was he really that bad for Madrid and has picked up his game now at Roma? Stats say otherwise!

A statistical look at Gago’s seasons after arriving at Madrid shows the real picture. 07/08 was the first full season for Gago, where he played in central midfield in a 4-4-2 with Guti/Diarra.

	Gago	Guti	Diarra
Mins played	2833	3587	2938
Appearances	36	45	38
Assists	4	18	2

Again Gago adapted as well as he could with the slightly offensive minded Guti and a more defensive player in the form of Diarra. 07/08 was probably the best season for him at Madrid, but poor team performance overshadowed his own.

	Gago	Guti	Diarra
Mins played	2743	1734	1102
Appearances	35	27	15
Assists	7	5	0

The prominence of Gago in Madrid’s play can be drawn from the above facts. Slowly, he gradually established himself as the main creative force, in both 4-4-2 and 4-3-3 formations. This was also true after Lass arrived in 08/09. Gago was injured for a minor part of the season but still put in brilliant performances with the likes of Sneijder at times. As Lass came in after the January transfer window, let’s compare how the two fared after January.

	Gago	Diarra
Mins played	1101	1852
Appearances	16	21
Assists	4	2

Contribution of Lass can’t be measured in terms of assists but it does give a fair indication about Gago.

The main focus being, Gago is not a defensive midfielder like Lass or Mahamadou Diarra. He is a central midfielder who excels in the defensive department. He also doesn’t have a great deal of pace and relies on his interceptions and immaculate tackling. He is somewhat similar to Denilson of Arsenal, in that he works really hard and rarely gets noticed. Gago is a creative player, who thrives alongside a more defensive minded player with whom he can share his defensive duties. The ideal formation for Gago is the 4-3-3; where he plays as the deeper player alongside a defensive midfielder.

This is exactly the reason why he has flourished in his first season at Roma. He has often played alongside a defensive midfielder like De Rossi, which has really helped him. His one touch passing is being best utilized by Luis Enrique, who prefers to use him exactly how he must be used. Playing Gago as the main defensive midfielder does create problems though, as his performance seems to drop. Against Novara at home he dished out an average performance, while in the away clash he was mesmeric. He played in a centre back role in the away clash and did admirably well given the fact that he is not used to that position.

How has Gago fared this season with respect to the other defensive and central midfielders in the league?

	Gago	Pirlo	Montolivo	Velloso	Vidal
Appearances	23	29	27	26	24
Total Passes	1407	2389	1815	1419	1494
Average passes per game	61.2	82.4	67.2	57.5	59.1
Key Passes	28	90	36	30	37
Key passes per game	1.2	3.1	1.3	1.3	1.4
Pass success Percentage	86.1	82.4	86.1	82.7	84.9

Clearly he is up there with the best. Shouldn’t be forgotten that this is his first season and he has had more appearances than the rest mentioned, as a substitute. Also, he has played lesser number of games than the others. What about the defensive aspect? Gago bases his game on reading the situations. Interceptions and tackles are his strength.

	Gago	Ambrosini	Marchisio	Cambiasso
Appearances	23	20	29	29
Total Tackles	52	68	69	90
Tackles won/Game	2.3	3.4	2.4	3.1
Total Interceptions	57	52	55	62
Interceptions won/Game	2.5	2.6	1.9	2.1
Total Aerial duels	64	46	28	43
Aerial duels won/Game	1.4	1.6	0.4	0.7

Again, Gago has been pitted against the seasoned pros and the best players in the Serie A. He again comes out as one of the finest with these figures. Gago has been exceptional for Roma this season and a pivotal figure in their pressing game.

Now let’s consider Gago against players who are considered superior to him at Madrid. Khedira and Lass are the players in direct competition with him. Xabi Alonso is a supreme player who is just impossible to replace. Hoever, Gago clearly excels than both Lass and Khedira. Though the leagues differ, playing style of Madrid and Roma is very similar. Both employ a 4-3-3 and a pressing style.

	Gago	Khedira	Lass
Apperances	23	21	17
Pass success Percentage/Game	86.1	87	86.7
Key passes /Game	1.2	0.4	0.5
Average passes/Game	61.2	35.1	42.4
Interceptions/Game	2.5	1.4	1.4
Aerial Duels/Game	1.4	0.9	0.4
Tackles/Game	2.3	1.6	3.9
Total Passes	1407	737	720
Total Key passes	28	8	8
Total Tackles	52	34	67
Total Interceptions	57	29	24
Total Aerial Duels	64	33	17

Clearly Gago leads the charge by a mile, especially over Khedira. Unfair comparisons and baseless hatred have made Gago a scapegoat for Madrid fans. He is not Redondo! He has a completely different style of play as compared to Redondo. Redondo used to dominate the midfield and he dictated the team’s play. Never has any other central midfielder been able to match him. Gago is his own self and a very good player in that respect. Hopefully, this article has shown what a true quality player he really is!