What Liverpool's Sheyi Ojo can offer Cardiff City after Rangers stint as Bluebirds beat Nottingham Forest to signing
The 23 year old is highly rated at Anfield - evidenced by the long-term contract he signed with the Reds two years ago
Monday 7th September 2020
Sheyi Ojo of Liverpool has signed for Cardiff City on loan
Cardiff City have signed Sheyi Ojo on loan for the 2020/21 season, getting in ahead of Nottingham Forest who were also said to be keen on the 23-year-old.
While he might be owned by Liverpool, Ojo has suffered a similar fate to that experienced by many young players at top teams in that he has spent more time on loan than he has with his parent club.
Ojo signed for the Reds when he was just 14 years old, and has since represented Wigan, Wolves, Fulham, Reims and Rangers.
However, it’s not as if he didn’t contribute when he did get a brief chance for Liverpool. Ojo managed to score one goal and provide three assists for Liverpool, despite making just six starts and playing a total of 554 minutes for the club.
He linked up well with the Reds’ three strikers at the time, as towards the end of 2015/16 – the season in which Jurgen Klopp took over – the young man set up goals for Daniel Sturridge, Christian Benteke and Roberto Firmino.
And Liverpool gave him a new five-year contract in 2018, which they wouldn’t have done after he hadn’t played for them for over a year unless they were impressed by how he was performing and his future potential.
But what sort of player is he, and what can he offer to the Bluebirds? If you believe smarterscout – an analysis website which uses statistical profiles to compare players – then his form for Fulham in the Championship in 2017/18 displayed similar characteristics to the likes of Raheem Sterling and Serge Gnabry.
High praise indeed, even if it’s all very theoretical. He has shown what he is capable of over the years, though.
Ojo is able to play on either wing, offering a decent goal threat from wide areas. According to Transfermarkt, he has made more than 50 appearances as both a left and right winger, getting at least 10 goals from each position.
A big part of why he gets on the score sheet is his above average ability to test goalkeepers with his shots. Data from FBREF.com reveals he averaged 1.49 shots on target for every 90 minutes he played with Fulham in 2017/18. It was the third highest figure in the Championship that season, behind only Aleksandar Mitrovic and Matt Smith.
Across his time with the Cottagers, Reims and Rangers, Ojo has put 46 per cent of his goal attempts on target. This compares very favourably with the average rate of around one in three.
The Hemel Hempstead-born winger will also provide a creative spark too. He was ranked 10th in the Scottish Premiership for assists (on a pro rata basis) in 2019/20. In a Europa League qualifier, he assisted two goals for Alfredo Morelos, and scored the other as Rangers beat Midtjylland 3-1 at Ibrox.
And his record shows that Steven Gerrard’s side played better when Ojo was in the team. Their goal difference in the league for last season was 1.55 per match, yet for every 90 minutes that the Liverpool loanee spent on the pitch, it was 2.47.
If you rank Scottish Premiership players for this particular statistic in 2019/20, you find that the top 13 in the chart consists of 12 Celtic players and Ojo. How much of it was directly down to him is up for debate, but Rangers were certainly more prolific when he made his 19 appearances.
It seems clear from his limited career history that Ojo should be able to make a contribution to the Bluebirds’ attack in 2020/21, and perhaps he can make South Wales a permanent destination if he does well.
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