2Mateo Kovacic is not a universally popular player among Chelsea fans, but if you break down his stats he’s among the top players in the Premier League.
A user on Reddit mapped the division’s top players in three areas – winning the ball, retaining the ball, progressing the ball – and saw who was in what category.
Thiago Alcantara, Rodri, Fernandinho and Naby Keita. Those are the true all rounders of the Premier League. Kovacic’s all roundedness is certainly one of his good points.
We’re still surprised to find out he’s in the top 25% of players for ball winning however, as is Jorginho, and (less surprisingly) N’Golo Kante.
You can see the full graphic in the image embedded here:
