LIEL ABADA joined Celtic aged just 19 after a successful spell in the Israeli top flight where he finished runner up for the top scorer award with 12 goals before he made the move to Scotland.
It looked as though he had been brought in to be back up to James Forrest, however the cascade of injuries across the forward line would result in Celtic relying a lot on the young forward.
Despite some inconsistent form which is expected of burgeoning talent, he has already contributed 10 goals and eight assists so far this campaign, which is incredible output for someone of his age.
Expectations are through the roof at a club like Celtic, and due to this combined with the injury crisis Abada has come under some undue criticism as the fanbase look to him to provide the offensive output required.
Despite playing roles he has little experience with the Israeli forward always gives his all and it was good to see his hard work rewarded as he guided Celtic into the winter break with two goals against St Johnstone. Abada under Ange will only ever improve which considering what he’s already capable of providing will make him a valuable asset for years to come.
Reviewing his data via StatsBomb, it’s easy to see just how impressive he’s been so far. His key strength is his movement to get into high-quality shooting positions. This can be seen across his offensive metrics. xG at 0.45 and xG/shot at 0.14 show he is generating high-quality output in games.
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In terms of just raw threat, he takes 3.12 shots p90 and has 7.75 touches in the box p90. This suggests he is constantly putting goalkeepers and defences under pressure. Abada provides big numbers creatively which might come as a surprise as his crossing can be erratic at times. However, his 0.31 open play xG assisted puts him near the top of the pile in Scotland for generating chances.
His main weakness is his 1v1 dribbling ability which shows below as only 0.87 successful dribbles p90. This is poor when compared to Jota’s 2.28. However, he has plenty of time to improve this attribute as he develops.
StatsBomb’s new advanced metric, OBV (On Ball Value) tries to more accurately define player actions with a more pragmatic scoring system. Abada for our league shows up as one of the best when examining these metrics.
Here's some explanation about the OBV metrics that involve Abada:
Pass OBV – Positive values attributed to players that successfully pass the ball into dangerous areas. Negative values attributed for players that pass away from dangerous areas.
Dribble & Carry OBV – Similar to passing, positive values associated to bringing the ball into more dangerous areas of the pitch and negative values for taking it into less dangerous areas.
Shot OBV – Positive value associated to a shot on target, score value will depend on area of the goal ball was going in to. Negative value associated with missing the target.
A lot of information can be derived from these metrics. Overall, it displays Abada as a quality forward that provides a large amount of threat in the opposition’s final third.
His 0.16 shot OBV indicates he is a strong finisher that hits the target in areas where goals are most likely. Despite his inability to beat the man with dribbling, Abada still drives the ball into dangerous areas frequently as shown by his high dribble and carry score.
Finally, his passing is risky and direct often looking to play it into dangerous areas as shown by his high passing score.
His overall OBV score is the 3rd highest in the Scottish Premiership, ahead of even Kyogo who sits in 5th place.
For being just 20 he has put up impressive numbers in his debut season.
Conclusion
Abada is going to continue developing and get better under Ange’s mentorship. If he’s providing this level of output already, it isn’t hard to imagine him continuing to improve as he matures and becomes more accustomed to the league and the manager's system.
He is an exciting young player that has played multiple positions when we have had injuries showing his adaptability to different roles. Regardless of inconsistent form, which is natural for young players, he has already proved a great asset to Celtic and we should all look forward to watching him continue his development in the coming years.
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