Birmingham City endured another disappointing campaign in the EFL Championship season just gone by as they finished 20th on the points table, two places below their previous campaign’s finish. In the 2020-21 season, the Blues finished with 52 points to their name, whereas last campaign, they had only 47. Birmingham City scored 50 times throughout the season but let in 75 goals, which was the fourth-worst defensive record in the division. Only Peterborough United, Reading and Bristol City conceded more. While Birmingham City’s defence must definitely bring in reinforcements, their attack should not be ignored either. In the past week, the Blues have been linked with the services of Norwich and Poland winger, Przemysław Płacheta.
Płacheta featured for Norwich City in 12 out of the 38 games last season. He made six starts and appeared on the pitch for 504 minutes. However, Płacheta failed to score or assist. He may have attempted only 1.15 shots per 90, which ranked him just above the median league value, but 71.43% of them hit the target. This shot accuracy ranked the Pole in the top 2% of midfielders. He also took just below two touches in the opponents’ penalty box per 90 and attempted 5.24 dribbles per 90 with a success rate of only 62.5%. With over 55.56% of his attacking actions being successful, Placheta ranked in the top 8% of midfielders.
Płacheta was barely involved in the game for the Canaries, attempting only 22 passes per 90 at a lowly accuracy of 74.81%, which ranked him in the bottom quintile for both categories. On the slightly positive side, he made just under two progressive runs per 90 and delivered 1.8 crosses per 90, putting him in the 74th and 72nd percentiles, respectively. The Pole also ranked above average for smart passes per 90, with 0.65 to his name.
As shown in the above heat map, Płacheta was mostly active on the right wing. He tested the opposition goalkeepers in seven out of the eight attempts. On the defensive end, the Pole attempted 20.5 pressures per 90, 2.5 tackles and interceptions per 90 and 1.25 blocks per 90.
As displayed in the above pass map, Płacheta made most of his successful passes on the right wing, with some of them coming in the centre of the park. The Pole completed 2.14 progressive passes per 90, 1.61 passes into the final third per 90 and 4.46 progressive carries per 90.
Since Płacheta has failed to find the back of the net and lay an assist to his teammate, he simply does not cut it in the Premier League. Maybe, a move to a Championship side is what the Pole needs to succeed, and Birmingham City could be that team.
