Why Saul Niguez is the perfect signing for Solskjaer’s midfield

Written by Nathan Wake

Style of play
When Lionel Messi describes a player as a ‘complete midfielder who has it all’ it’s worth
taking notice of whoever that may be. In this case the description of Saul Niguez by the
Argentine legend is pretty much spot on. The technically gifted Spanish international is best
deployed as a box to box or holding midfielder but, such is the trust manager Diego Simeone
has in his abilities, he’s been utilised across all midfield positions to great effect, though
since the departure of Gabi in 2018 this has often been in a deeper role. Always looking to
play the ball forwards in an Atletico Madrid side that specialise in playing on the counter
attack he is equally adept at finding space by spraying a long pass or with one of his
trademark surging runs as Bayern Munich discovered in the 2015/16 champions league
semi-final. Not blessed with incredible pace, he makes up for it with the ability to find space
between the lines, with and without the ball. Saul’s skill at finding the right pass or taking
the ball on himself would be an invaluable asset in a Manchester United team that have
struggled against defences with low blocks.

In the bigger games though we know Solskjaer loves to set up his side on the counter and,
with Atletico arguably the greatest exponents of the counter attack in recent years, it’s a
system that Saul knows inside and out. We all know how effective United can be against ‘big
6’ opposition, however it’s against the teams they traditionally should be seeing off
comfortably that Manchester United have struggled under Solskjaer. You cannot be a
stalwart of a Simeone team without incredible work rate or drive and it’s a key characteristic
of what has made Saul one of the world’s best midfielders. We’ve seen the impact just one
quality player has had on the team by looking to play forwards and sustain a high tempo in
Bruno Fernandes and Saul would be another exponent of that game from deeper within the
midfield.

Injury record
In a Manchester United midfield that has seen injuries blighting the appearances of many
players in recent times, to have a player who has missed only 11 games through injury for
Atletico Madrid in the last 6 seasons would be invaluable. To put Saul’s injury record into
perspective, 5 of the games he missed were due to a kidney haematoma after he took an
accidental kick to the stomach in a Champions League match. Hospitalised with kidney
trauma and internal bleeding he was out of action for 6 weeks before returning from action
against the advice of doctors. Playing with an internal catheter he admits he p***ed blood
after every match and training session. In constant pain and discomfort, he played with the
internal catheter for over two years at risk to his own health. Saul was that insistent upon
continuing to play football that he even asked the doctor to just remove the malfunctioning
kidney before being talked around. For Saul the discomfort was a small price to pay to be
able to continue playing the game that he loves.

Drive and Passion

Saul has a drive and passion for the game that matches any footballer, instilled into him by a
family that lives and breathes the game. His father, Jose Antonio, played professionally for
Elche while his two older brothers, Aaron and Jonathan, are under contract with Spanish 2 nd
division clubs Malaga and Elche respectively. Growing up playing with his older brothers and
their friends honed his competitive nature, a trait that he has carried throughout his entire
career to date. The desire to constantly improve, to refine his skills at every opportunity, are
inspired by his relationship with his father. “I know how sad he gets when I have a setback,
how it affects him. When I play a bad game, I’m not the only one beating himself up over it;
he does, too. He’ll say things like: ‘Saúl, that shot! If you want to be the best, you have to
turn your foot inside’. That’s helped me set the bar very high.”

Further interviews with Saul reveal a focussed and highly driven character: “I want
challenges that really test me, very difficult ones. I was the same as a kid, when you play
with players your own age it doesn’t bring out your best. At Atlético I always played with
older players, sometimes out of position, I’d keep going back until I beat them. Hard things
make me happy. You get upset but you mature and improve: the quicker you reach your
best level, the longer you stay there. They say players peak at 28 but I wanted to be there at
22, 23. I want to be the best midfielder in the world. I know maybe I won’t get there but by
aiming that high, saying ‘I want to be the best’, I’ll reach my best. And then I’ll be satisfied.”

Manchester United fans demand a lot from those that pull on the famous red shirt but the
minimum requirement from a United player is the drive and passion that Saul has proven to
have buckets full of. In a United midfield with Saul alongside the likes of McTominay and
Fernandes you begin to see not only the quality of player, but the commitment to achieve
the success the club has been lacking.

Versatility
In all the formations Solskjaer has used in his time as Manchester United manager Saul
could fit into them all seamlessly. In the 3-5-2 formation with wing backs, used recently
against Chelsea and Man City, Matic and Fred were paired both times as defensive
midfielders and it would certainly be an improvement to see Saul alongside Fred or
McTominay in one of those positions. Most often though Solskjaer deploys some variation
of a 4-3-3 formation, and which particular variant will depend on how Ole thinks he can get
the best out of Fernandes. Some of United’s best football under Solskjaer has been found in
a three-man midfield with a defensive midfielder behind two more forward minded central
midfielders. Saul has been used in a similar formation for Atletico Madrid to great success in
both the holding role and on the left of the two central midfielders. Most likely though
United will deploy two midfielders behind a Fernandes given a free role to influence play as
much as possible. In this scenario a box to box midfielder with a wide range of passing
ability and the defensive nous to break up opposition attacks would be ideal, a profile that
fits Saul perfectly.

He’s an upgrade
When you look at the midfield signings United have made post-Ferguson the question you
have to ask of all of them is ‘Were they better than what we already had?’ The fact that
several them have since moved on having struggled to make a lasting impact answers that
question for us. Saul is not only an improvement on our current midfield but one of the best
midfielders in world football and, at 25 years old, arguably has his best years still to come.
The stats back up the positive difference Saul will offer in key areas. The most obvious stats
people look at are goal contributions and, whilst Saul is behind the possibly departing Paul
Pogba and newly arrived Bruno Fernandes on that front, he is head and shoulders above the
likes of Fred, Matic and McTominay. Pogba has been an important source of goals but, while
it is expected Fernandes will take over as the main goal scoring midfielder, a top 4 team
competing on multiple fronts will need goal contributions from as many players as possible
to be successful. Liverpool this last season, for example, 42% of their goals came from their
central midfielders and defenders.

Outside of goal contributions is where you see the true value of Saul to this United team. At
only 6’0 you might not expect him to be the most imperious of players in the air and the
ability to make defensive aerial contributions is important for a defensive midfielder. This
season though Saul has won an average of 3.9 aerial duels per game. Obviously the 5’6 Fred
really struggles in this area averaging 0.4 but, both at 6’4, McTominay and Matic average
only 2 and 1.8 respectively. Saul also leads in terms of tackles and interceptions per game
demonstrating his abilities in the defensive midfield role. Now a passing completion
percentage of 77.9% may not sound too good but it’s actually very similar to Bruno
Fernandes. One of Saul’s main roles at Atletico is to turn defence into attack very quickly
and as a player who is always looking to move the ball forwards there will be more passes
go astray as he attacks the space rather than plays it safe. However, for all Saul’s attacking
intent, he tends to give the ball away less than both Fred and McTominay. So, when you
take the potential attacking contributions combined with his defensive capabilities you have
the sort of complete midfielder that United have arguably been lacking since the days of
Carrick and Scholes.

In summary, as Spanish journalist Guillem Balague states: “Saul is capable of playing in the
‘Simeone style’ or the ‘Barcelona style’, we have never had a midfielder like this.” A player
who would walk into any team in world football, Saul could be the lynchpin of the
Manchester United midfield for years to come.