EmpicsWayne Routledge: The winger's statistics speak for themselves

Competition for a starting berth on the Swans' flanks has been fierce all season. Since Scott Sinclair's summer departure for Manchester City, Wayne Routledge appears to have made the left wing his own, whilst stalwart Nathan Dyer and newcomer Pablo have been contesting the right. So which players are actually performing best this season?

I have taken a broad look at a few key statistical categories to get a better picture of which players bring which skills to the table (or rather the football pitch). The Swans are a passing team whilst wingers are typically tasked with supplying crosses, so these areas seem like a good place to start. Michael Laudrup actually prefers his wingers to cut inside and play short passes through the middle more often than crosses from the byline however, so with that disclaimer noted, here are the figures:



In terms of passing, there isn't much variation. Nathan Dyer is top of the table, clocking a Swans-esque 86% accuracy, whilst Pablo - perhaps still learning to communicate with his team-mates - brings up the rear with an acceptable 76%. However, a look at crossing accuracy shows a remarkable difference. Wayne Routledge is the leader here by some distance with a strong 27%, which is actually a decent figure in this category. Nathan Dyer was always a dribbler and mischief maker rather than a crosser, and it seems Pablo plays a similar game, with both men only connecting crosses a lean 8% of the time. Its seems Laudrup's preference for his wingers to play the ball on the ground rather than through the air has some foundation.

As attacking players, the Swans wide-men are expected to create their share of chances and, when possible, score some goals. So far, Wayne Routledge and Nathan Dyer have two goals apiece to Pablo's one. However, the Spaniard has played less than half the minutes of the other two. Routledge leads the trio in assists, with three to date compared with two from Nathan Dyer and none as yet from Pablo. However, the big revelation comes in the "chances created" category:



These are astounding figures from Wayne Routledge, who creates just over three chances per game (actually 3.17). That's not far off double the chances created by Nathan Dyer (1.7) and actually more than four times as many as Pablo (0.75). If nothing else, these figures demonstrate in black and white terms just how much Routledge's level of performance has elevated working under Michael Laudrup (last season, Routledge created 1.23 chances per game). I have hinted before at the similarity between Routledge's canny creativity and Laudrup's own pass mastery; perhaps the one Swan who has benefited the most from Laudrup's appointment is Routledge, who seems to have an affinity with his new boss.

Moving on, here's a look at some less obvious areas of influence - challenges won and fouls won per game. The "challenges" category describes tackles and contests for the ball both on the ground and in the air. The "fouls" category is simply the number of free kicks the player wins for the Swans each game from being fouled.



Here, Nathan Dyer comes into his own. Dyer has always boasted an unmatched work ethic on the field. He is a vastly under-rated ball winner - likely the result of preconceptions based on his slight stature and designation as a winger - and, as the chart shows, routinely too hot to handle. Dyer draws the most fouls of all the Swans players, not just the wingers (3.57 per game), and given most of them come in the attacking third, that equates to three or four good set piece opportunities per game.

Wayne Routledge isn't much of a slouch either. For Pablo, perhaps it is best to say his figures are more traditionally representative of an attacking winger, although that could change as he is further indoctrinated into the Swans "total football" team ethic.

On the evidence we've been looking at, it is hard to say which two of the three wingers ought to be starting, although Wayne Routledge probably should be one of them. For me, Nathan Dyer edges Pablo based on his end-to-end contribution, work ethic and nuisance factor. In saying that, it might be best to wait until Pablo has a few more games under his belt before making any kind of judgement.

If nothing else, the Swans certainly have depth at the position. With a failed bid for a fourth winger at the end of the summer and rumours of renewed interest in that direction brewing for January, Laudrup's selection dilemmas aren't going to get any easier. I'm sure it's a problem he's happy to have.

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