Due to his position as a playmaker, Kruse, who himself was still in the front line in Berlin, can have more influence on VfL performances than his Danish teammate. In addition, a lot more was rightly expected from the Bundesliga-experienced “leading wolf” when he was signed.
Much more efficient than Union, but not more top scorer
And what is Kruse doing in Wolfsburg now? With his performance score of 59.11, the left-footed player almost seamlessly followed his Union time (59.78). His goals per 90 minutes (0.33 to 0.34), scoring chances (1.16 to 1.17) and dribbling (1.99 to 2.1) are almost identical. In terms of average actions (58:56) and passes (38:34), he improved a bit – probably also due to the change of position.
What is the “Performance Score”?
- Goals, passes, fouls, shots or offside positions: the basic game data and further analyzes such as “expected goals” or “action scores” are placed in a higher-level context by an algorithm in the “performance score” – for example, position-related.
- In the “Performance Score” all players are initially set to 0 and are evaluated on the basis of pure performance data combined with data models.
- This value provides an assessment of how well or poorly a player is currently playing.
- The “Performance Score” is a component of the GSN Index, which in turn is a general, long-term evaluation of all skills, potential and qualities of a player.
It is noteworthy that Kruse has become more efficient in almost all areas: in the duel rate (46.36 to 33.08 percent) – on the offensive there are even 60 percent won duels (in Berlin 37.78), in successful dribbling ( 74.87 to 59.05 percent), header duels won (42.96 to 28.54 percent), cross accuracy (36.09 to 29.09 percent) and shooting accuracy (50.0 to 40.86 Percent).
However, in his role as a goal preparer, he clearly falls behind: in the six games he has not yet conceded a goal to any teammate – he only got the penalty for his first VfL goal himself. In general, Kruse only creates one chance per game (at Union 1.86) and has an average of only 0.33 scorer points (previously 0.62).
Many “soft” factors
According to the data, its contribution to the upswing is rather small. Kruse has only one of the team’s average of seven chances, and he gives up one of nine shots on goal. On average, VfL has 3.8 shots on the opponent’s goal – Kruse lets go of 0.5. His 38 passes are matched by 417 of his teammates and one Kruse ball recovery per game by 52 of his teammates. And even with his 58 actions per game, he records just 7.54 percent of all actions in the team.
But there are still many factors that cannot be captured by statistics. For example Kruse’s role as spokesman within the team, but also after the games at the microphones of the media representatives.
“We’ve lost two games now, which is definitely not good. But we still got ten points.”
— Wolfsburg playmaker Max Kruse
“It doesn’t go against anyone personally – we all defend together. But I’m annoyed that we give the game back after the 2-2 draw,” said Kruse in Freiburg – and with his statements he is the coach’s extended arm: ” “I don’t see that the defeat has broken us. We’ve lost two games now, which is certainly not good. Despite that, we got ten points. But in our situation, you can’t afford to concede goals like that – simple as that.”
Arnold and Philipp blossom in Kruse’s “shadow”.
His merits also include the fact that opponents on the pitch care more about Kruse than about other players on offense. In “Kruses Schatten” – figuratively speaking, but also in the game system – Maximilian Arnold in particular has blossomed recently. Four scorer points in the last six league games are very strong. The situation is similar for Maximilian Philipp with one goal and two assists. And Wind (two hits) certainly found it easier to get used to the Mittelland Canal alongside Kruse.
“I’m always really happy when I see Max. But I’m not happy when he scores goals like the first one,” said Freiburg coach Streich on Saturday after the game and added with a laugh: “Max has developed well. But he would be even better if he had stayed with us for three or four years instead of just one year.”
Kruse has undoubtedly made his way and is a big piece of the puzzle that Wolfsburg was missing before. Even if he is not yet satisfied with his scorer yield in the VfL jersey, the “Wolves” upswing is based on Kruse’s commitment.