When club football finally comes back after a long international break, Southampton will travel to Sheffield United’s Bramall Lane this fifth game week of the Premier League season.
The newly-promoted side have had a very positive start to the season with five points picked up. They have adapted quickly to the new surroundings while staying true to what they have done best in the Championship.
An innovative 5-3-2 formation that involves overlapping centre-backs and flexible movements from the players. This is something quite new to the highest level of English football and they have surprised a few of the big names. Besides the importance of the central defenders, both wing-backs also play a crucial role. And one of them is left wing-back Enda Stevens.
The former Aston Villa player provides the width on the left-hand side in both their attack and defence. On the ball, he usually dribbles high up the pitch and sometimes tucks inside to create space for centre-back Jack O’Connell to move in. Along with the nearest central midfielder, they form a passing triangle inside the half-space to bypass the pressure from the opponent.
He has the pace and the technical abilities to keep the ball to his feet and escape his marker, which showed in his situation against Crystal Palace. Using his close control and vision, Stevens can identify the space where he can move the ball out of the overloaded area and to another teammate. This will help the team’s attack progressing and continue to approach the 16-yard box. On average, he registered 3.74 dribbles per 90 minutes and completed 75% of them, while also had 7.95 attacking duels per 90 minutes.
Also, making crosses into the box is one of his traits. When he reaches the final third, he will look for potential receivers inside the box to deliver the ball towards. Whipped cross is usually his choice, but in case he moves near the corner flag, a low cross is enough for the likes of Callum Robinson or Billy Sharp to make a tap-in.
Besides from the crosses, his positional and spatial awareness allows him to pick out pockets of spaces on the pitch. As his teammates are on the ball, he could drift flexibly across the field to capitalise on left-behind gaps and turns himself into an available passing option.
On the other hand, the positioning also helps him to pick out the position where the ball drops in order to clear it out of the box. As a defender who doesn’t tend to dive into tackles, still, he is aggressive in recovering the ball. Another noticeable thing from Stevens is in his 5-3-2 formation, both wing-backs stay a bit narrow by moving into the half-space. Sheffield United keep things compact in front of their box and prevent the long shots that come towards them.
Playing the role of an attacking wing-back, Stevens has adopted a very dynamic style of play to be able to fulfil his responsibilities in both defence and attack. At one end of the field, his crosses provide chances for the strikers to convert. His runs also attract the opposition’s defenders which will open spaces for his teammates to move end. At the other end, he forms a back five along with the defenders and aims to recover possession as soon as possible. A player who provides the width for Sheffield United and is good at what he does, Stevens deserves to be considered as the Opposition Dangerman.
