Sheffield United may have found their first choice right-back for the upcoming campaign. The Blades have been digging around for a new right-back after they sold Jayden Bogle to Leeds United earlier this month and now they appear to have found their man.
According to Alan Nixon, United are close to confirming the loan signing of Wolverhampton Wanderers right-back Ki-Jana Hoever. The 22-year-old already has valuable Championship experience after his loan move to Stoke City last season, where he appeared 40 times and registered four goals and five assists.
Chris Wilder is getting a very capable right-back in the young Dutchman – one that can defend as well as excel in the final third and in build up play, which is becoming ever more crucial in the modern game with full-backs usually having the most touches out of anyone on the pitch.
What can Ki-Jana Hoever bring to Sheffield United?
Hoever is exceptionally athletic, which again is a big plus to have in that position nowadays. Not only can he use his pace and power to sweep up danger and make recovery runs, he can motor down the wing and provide an overlap or underlap.
Using FBref’s statistics which compare Hoever to Championship full-backs from last season, he ranked in the 95th percentile for tackles and interceptions. He was dependable in one-on-one situations where he had a good enough success rate to rank him in the 87th percentile. Aerially he performed better than average – ranking in the 68th percentile for aerial duels win rate.
In terms of carries, Hoever tends to not carry the ball that much, ranking in the 44th percentile for total carries – he also ranked 56th for carries into the final third.
One thing that Hoever does do a lot of though is crossing, ranking in the 82nd percentile for total crosses, and ranking in the 69th percentile for completed crosses.
Another frequent part of his game is taking shots on for himself and creating shooting opportunities for his teammates. Last season, Hoever ranked in the 80th percentile for total shots and 83rd for non-penalty goals. Lastly, he ranked very high in assists – 87th percentile.
Does Hoever coming in solve the puzzle for the Blades?
When you compare Hoever to United’s previous right-back Bogle, they are quite different. While Hoever rarely carried the ball, Bogle carries it often. And while Hoever crossed often, Bogle tends to do less crossing and more combination play around the box. Meanwhile, both are equally as good in the final third at either creating chances for teammates or creating one for themselves.
I think Hoever is a perfect fit for how Chris Wilder wants his Sheffield United team to play next season: high energy, athletic, and purposeful in attacking areas.
With Hoever’s crossing output from the right, and Burrows’ outstanding delivery quality from the left, Kieffer Moore must be licking his lips at the thought of the chances that can come his way this coming season. And that’s not even mentioning Oli Arblaster, Gustavo Hamer and Callum O’Hare that will supply him.
Rhian Brewster can’t even find the banjo to hit the barn door with at the moment. I hope finds his niche in this squad because I still believe there’s a goalscorer hidden in there. Hope he’s not another Ravel Morrison or Christian Nade who just makes a good living without excelling ( although that won’t do him any harm personally).
He looks like he’s carrying a bit too much weight which may indicate lifestyle issues – or may not. Who knows? He seems like a nice bloke and we really need to get some value for the £23m outlay