Why Enzo Fernandez Will Either MAKE Or BREAK Man City

Analysis of Enzo Fernandez's impact on Manchester City and whether he is the key to their Premier League success.

Key Takeaways

Enzo Fernandez is a highly skilled midfielder with exceptional passing and movement abilities.
His transfer to Manchester City is seen as a pivotal moment for their midfield rebuild.
Fernandez's ability to break lines and create chances is among the best in the Premier League.
Defensive contributions and finishing support from teammates remain areas of concern.
His performance will significantly influence Manchester City's success in the upcoming season.

What the video covers

Enzo Fernandez's transfer to Manchester City breaks the British transfer record and raises questions about City's Premier League challenge.
The video evaluates Fernandez's role as a midfield rebuild piece, comparing his Chelsea and potential City performances.
Fernandez is praised for his passing range, mobility, and ability to cover ground from a deep number six position.
His heat maps and statistics show strong ball progression, accurate passing, and line-breaking passes.
The analysis highlights how Fernandez draws pressure, creates space, and releases teammates effectively.
There is discussion on his box-crashing runs and goal-scoring improvements in recent seasons.
The video also addresses some struggles, including defensive work and reliance on teammates' finishing.
Fernandez's elite-level vision, timing, and quality of delivery are emphasized as key assets.
Comparisons are made between his role under different managers and systems at Chelsea.
Overall, the video debates whether Fernandez will make or break Manchester City's midfield and title ambitions.

Chapters

Why is Enzo Fernandez considered a key signing for Manchester City?

Fernandez is viewed as the final piece in Manchester City's midfield rebuild due to his exceptional passing range, mobility, and ability to create scoring opportunities, which could elevate the team's overall performance.

What are Enzo Fernandez's main strengths according to the analysis?

His main strengths include accurate passing, line-breaking passes, box-crashing runs, vision around the box, and the ability to draw pressure and create space for teammates.

What concerns are raised about Enzo Fernandez's game?

Concerns include his defensive work rate and the fact that his assist numbers are sometimes limited by teammates' finishing abilities, which could affect his overall impact.

Full Transcript — Download SRT & Markdown

Speaker A

Right, hello everybody. Welcome to the Adam Clearary football channel where the British transfer record has been broken, I think, because Enzo Fernandez has gone to Manchester City and now everybody is wondering, can this team with all its options and all its depth actually challenge for the Premier League? Is Enzo Fernandez the final piece in a midfield jigsaw rebuild that costs the same as, like, a small hospital?

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challenge for the Premier League? Is Enzo Fernandez the final piece in a midfield jigsaw rebuild that costs the same as like a small hospital?

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Okay, so just quickly before we start, why am I dressed, uh, like a university drug dealer? I've got to go for a run.

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It's the peak of my training run. I have to go do 15 kilometers immediately after I do this. And I'll explain more about why I'm doing that. Look, quick charity uh link description, etc. But second of all, I must also confess

Speaker A

It's the peak of my training run. I have to go do 15 kilometers immediately after I do this. And I'll explain more about why I'm doing that. Look, quick charity, uh, link description, etc. But second of all, I must also confess

Speaker A

world could possibly have. And yet, me personally, I do struggle with him. I would say he's been at the very heart of everything good about Chelsea in the last three years, but also at the heart of most of

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I don't really get Enzo Fernandez. Like, I think he's in the very top bracket of midfielders. Some of the things you see him do with his passing range, his late box-crashing runs. He's got moments on his CV that only the best players in the

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right? He tends to sit in that sort of deep number six position. And when he's used right, you can tell from his heat map that he gets a lot of ground coverage and he uses that mobility to be

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world could possibly have. And yet, me personally, I do struggle with him. I would say he's been at the very heart of everything good about Chelsea in the last three years, but also at the heart of most of

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The expected assists versus actual assists show you that his teammates do let him down occasionally with his finishing. You should have a lot more of those. We'll talk about that uh later on as well. But the main one to note is

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the bad stuff as well. So, we're going to look at all of that stuff, right? But I just want to start, as you should do in life, with the positives. I'll just start with his heat map from last season,

Speaker A

the ball like for example Enzo Moresque's Chelsea and for another example Enzo Moresque's Man City.

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right? He tends to sit in that sort of deep number six position. And when he's used right, you can tell from his heat map that he gets a lot of ground coverage and he uses that mobility to be

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that. Like some players will isolate a defender 1 v one, beat them with a bit of skill, get through that way. Others will just run the ball into open spaces, carrying it up the field uh like that.

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a ball progression machine. These are a selection of his numbers from last season and they're all really, really strong. Like, he clearly sees a lot of the ball. His passing is very accurate.

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the preferred way for teams like this is because if you run it, you've committed to doing that and can't really change your mind. And if you lose it, you are now the wrong side of the ball and maybe

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The expected assists versus actual assists show you that his teammates do let him down occasionally with his finishing. You should have a lot more of those. We'll talk about that, uh, later on as well. But the main one to note is

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Now, under Moresca and then Rosinia, which wow, uh, remember that Fernandez was used in a number of different ways, but fundamentally, regardless of the setup, Chelsea wanted to end up from this starting position into this attacking shape. You would have a

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this. There is virtually no midfielder in the Premier League better than him at line-breaking passes. And that is truly, honestly, maybe the most valuable asset to have if you are playing in the middle of the park for a team who sees a lot of

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freedom to drop into other spaces to get on the ball and make things happen. And the reason Fernandez is more important to this structure than Palmer is is because not only would he go and drop all the way into the pivot to find space

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the ball, like, for example, Enzo Moresque's Chelsea and, for another example, Enzo Moresque's Man City.

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here somewhere where Kukara is, but he's dropped all the way over here to get on the ball. and Newcastle obviously don't put a lot of pressure on him because he's absolutely not the responsibility of either of these two players. That's

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Whether the opposition press you or sit in a low block, your value on the ball in these positions is entirely determined by your ability to move it between the lines of defense. And there's a number of different ways to do

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Well, he knows that Botman wants to be really aggressive with Palmer, so he waits for him to drop, pulls the defender out of the way, and then Dilap runs off into the space and he threads a ball through every single line of

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that. Like, some players will isolate a defender 1 v 1, beat them with a bit of skill, get through that way. Others will just run the ball into open spaces, carrying it up the field, uh, like that.

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than the rest of Chelsea's midfield options. He draws that pressure towards him. It frees up space for his teammates and then he releases them up the pitch.

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But the most controlled way to do it, and therefore the most valuable way for teams who have a lot of possession, is by just passing it. And just to go off on a little tangent here, the reason that is

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plays tells you that he is at an elite level for midfielders in world football on the ball. And then when he actually is around the box, his vision, his weight of pass, his angle of cross, his timing, everything, that's all at the

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the preferred way for teams like this is because if you run it, you've committed to doing that and can't really change your mind. And if you lose it, you are now the wrong side of the ball and maybe

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the top. It isn't just a good pass. He scoops it into the air with backspin so that when it lands it doesn't skid away.

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even on your ass. Whereas if you pass it, you actually can change your mind at the very last second. And even if you do lose it, you're still goal side anyway.

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the quality of delivery that very few players are capable of doing. And like I said before, if he had been with better finishers last season or even just better players, so many of these chances and these opportunities would have been

Speaker A

Now, under Moresca and then Rosinia, which, wow, uh, remember that Fernandez was used in a number of different ways, but fundamentally, regardless of the setup, Chelsea wanted to end up from this starting position into this attacking shape. You would have a

Speaker A

Fernandez went on the best scoring run of his entire career and got more league goals than he had in the previous two seasons combined. And if you go and you watch those goals back, right, they are almost universally all just box crashing

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central focal point here, the width coming from both the wide forwards like this, a defender inverting into midfield, and then Fernandez and Palmer in this sort of left and right dual number 10 role where they have a lot of

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there's the first win of the season against West Ham, then against Brighton, again Burnley, again Man City, again West Ham United, PSG and leads in the FA Cup. and Opa, thank you Opter very neatly, I'll move them out the way, made

Speaker A

freedom to drop into other spaces to get on the ball and make things happen. And the reason Fernandez is more important to this structure than Palmer is is because not only would he go and drop all the way into the pivot to find space

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he making this run every single time the ball goes wide, but he's also reassessing his angle to make sure he comes in at the back post. like this is a really even spread of left versus right, which obviously he plays on that

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in the midfield if indeed he needed it, but he would also drop all the way into the back line if that's where the opportunities were as well. Like here, they've got Newcastle penned all the way in. So theoretically, he should be over

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graph here, right, is that this is the fourth highest number in the Premier League for this type of run into the box. and the three players above him are all center forwards given he played most of the season as a pivot sometimes a 10

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here somewhere where Kukara is, but he's dropped all the way over here to get on the ball. And Newcastle obviously don't put a lot of pressure on him because he's absolutely not the responsibility of either of these two players. That's

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player and it comes down to this right this is the profile and the start line and just the ability of an incredibly talented footballer. And yet in the entire time he's been at Chelsea, they have never seriously challenged for the league. Now

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all well and good being able to find that space, but what can he do with it?

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They'd scored more goals. They looked really good and Fernandez was on fire. Yeah, he had like three goals and four assists in his last six games. He was wearing the armband. It was going really well and then it just fell apart. One

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Well, he knows that Botman wants to be really aggressive with Palmer, so he waits for him to drop, pulls the defender out of the way, and then Dilap runs off into the space and he threads a ball through every single line of

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just before I say what I'm about to say, right, yes, there are a hundred other reasons for this, right? The managers they've had, the systems they've used, the injuries they've got, the fixture pile of, all the other players in this

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Newcastle's low block. And that is him leaving the final third in order to then create in the final third. And then here, this is him basically asking for the ball off the goalkeeper because he is better at receiving under pressure

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to scrutinize their role in your form. And I think when you do, it throws up a number of things for me personally that I would find concerning. And it's mainly that without the ball, Fernandez can routinely offer you very little. His

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than the rest of Chelsea's midfield options. He draws that pressure towards him. It frees up space for his teammates and then he releases them up the pitch.

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contribution from the season we were just talking about where they started well and then fell away. If that is in the center of the pitch for you, you can see why teams started to find Chelsea quite easy to get at, especially in that

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And that he does this kind of stuff at all is genuinely really impressive. But the fact he does it consistently in almost every single game. And these aren't just selective highlights. I found this is pretty much exactly how he

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swap that out with this season's numbers, it is trending upwards. You would find that an encouraging sign if you're the team that's buying him. But the one thing that doesn't really change and is unforgivable is that one, that one there. How easily

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plays tells you that he is at an elite level for midfielders in world football on the ball. And then when he actually is around the box, his vision, his weight of pass, his angle of cross, his timing, everything, that's all at the

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league if you can get him isolated. And look, whether you want to put that down to a lack of technique, which isn't really his fault, or a lack of effort, which would be, that is entirely up to you. But the fact is, when Chelsea have

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very top level as well. Like this next thing I'm going to show you is not an assist, but it is stuck in my head pretty much all season. Because even just to spot Gusto here is one thing, but look at the arc on this ball over

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quickest. That's not his fault. You either are quick or you're not. But the number of sprints there, being in the bottom 20% of midfielders in the Premier League, for the amount you sprint and how far you sprint, there's not really

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the top. It isn't just a good pass. He scoops it into the air with backspin so that when it lands it doesn't skid away.

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responsibility on the guy next to you when naturally your mistakes are going to happen. And don't get me wrong, there are games indeed entire stretches of the season where what he is offering you on the ball more than makes up for what he

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It pretty much stops dead for the pass. Like Gusto, that is, doesn't even need to control that ball in the opposition's box. He is able to cross it with his first touch. And that is all to do with

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be amazing going forward every single game. So when those games come along for whatever reason, you're not doing enough of the basics to allow somebody else to go and win the game for you. And just as like a small final point here, and this

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the quality of delivery that very few players are capable of doing. And like I said before, if he had been with better finishers last season or even just better players, so many of these chances and these opportunities would have been

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blend and the vibe in the in the changing room. And I think your captain should always be a major part of trying to make sure that's as good as it can be. So for Chelsea to let him go on

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assists for him. So yes, great player Enzo Fernandez. I've got absolutely no question about that. Right. But last season, something in him changed.

Speaker A

They've let him go. So, what does that say about his role in it? And just to caveat everything I've said there, one, Enzo Moresca maybe knows him better than any other manager on the planet, and he's clearly very happy with his

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Fernandez went on the best scoring run of his entire career and got more league goals than he had in the previous two seasons combined. And if you go and you watch those goals back, right, they are almost universally all just box-crashing

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well, who is so good in the early buildup stages, it reduces the need for Fernandez to be there. He can play a lot higher up and thus relieves him of the defensive work he quite often struggles with. So the point I'm trying to make is

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back post tap-ins where he reads across really well and then steals in late to score with one touch. It started in the Conference League final where he pops up here with the equalizer and then he gets one in the Club World Cup and then

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teammate or a leader, he is a net negative for your team. So over to you Enzo. And yes, just before I go to address the whole knees out on camera tracksuit situation, I am really that pale. Uh this is my big training run

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there's the first win of the season against West Ham, then against Brighton, again Burnley, again Man City, again West Ham United, PSG and Leeds in the FA Cup. And Opa, thank you Opter very neatly, I'll move them out the way, made

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and we are trying to raise as much money as we can for minds who are a mental health charity here in the UK. If you've ever needed mental health services in this or any other country, you will know

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this graph, right, that shows you all of those box-crashing runs he made last season that either led to a chance on goal, those are the ones in gray, or an actual goal itself, those are the ones in green. And you can see, not only is

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leaving um that I'm doing this uh for them. Any donations, big or small, are great. They make that money go so much further than you would ever possibly believe. The link is in the description down below. You can get me across all

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he making this run every single time the ball goes wide, but he's also reassessing his angle to make sure he comes in at the back post. Like this is a really even spread of left versus right, which obviously he plays on that

Speaker A

Um, and that's it. Subscribe to the channel if you haven't already. Thanks. Bye.

Topics:Enzo FernandezManchester CityPremier Leaguemidfield analysisfootball transferChelseapassing rangebox-crashing runsfootball tacticsAdam Clery Football Channel

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