Remember Rémy Cabella, Newcastle fans? That slight little attacking midfielder signed as part of the 'French Revolution' at St James' Park in the mid-2010s?
A lesser player may have chosen to dribble at a defender instead of passing to Bamba to open up space, let alone have the composure to perform a fake shot in the box and provide the assist. A 32-yea- old playing his best football in years, mixing it with some of the games biggest stars and brilliantly exciting to watch. This is an example of the progressive passes and shot-creating actions that stood out in the data. To begin with, a match in the early weeks of the season, fittingly against Montpellier. With the empowerment provided by Fonseca, who is a great stylistic match for him, Cabella is able to display his ability in full. What follows is a selection of some of the best. He’s even ranked 19th in Ligue 1 as a whole, which is remarkable in a category dominated by deeper-positioned players, who typically have more of the pitch to progress into. As Adam Scully of Total Football Analysis writes, Fonseca ‘wants his teams to be in control of games by keeping possession of the ball as much as possible’. I’m sure of it.” Cabella was clear that “the difference was the physicality.” “To play in England, you have to be strong”, he said. Champions of France to the surprise of practically everyone in 2021, Lille have been undergoing a rebuild over the past couple of years. Described in a Guardian article from the time as having a ‘low centre of gravity afforded by his 5ft 7in frame’, a ‘balletic sense of balance’ and the ‘ability to move possession on swiftly’. As Cabella himself told the Chronicle years later, “I played on the right or on the left and it was a little bit difficult for me because I had to defend a lot and run a lot.