Who Is Andri Guðjohnsen?
The son of former Bolton Wanderers, Chelsea, and Barcelona player Eidur Guðjohnsen and grandson of Anderlecht legend Arnór Guðjohnsen, Andri has been having a superb season with Danish Superliga side Lyngby Boldklub since joining permanently from Swedish side IFK Norrköping.
In fact, the 22-year-old Iceland international striker is the Danish Superliga’s top scorer, with 13 goals this season.
The Iceland international’s form has attracted interest from abroad, with Belgian Pro League side KAA Gent reportedly making progress to sign the 22-year-old this summer.
It would be a needed signing for the Buffaloes if it were to be finalised, with Gent having sold their two starting strikers in January, Gift Orban moving to Lyon, and Hugo Cuypers being sold to Chicago Fire in MLS.
This tactical analysis and scout report will take a more detailed look at Guðjohnsen’s style of play, as well as how he may fit into the Gent squad and what he offers up front compared to the two strikers the club lost.
Andri Guðjohnsen Position
The heat map shown above is able to give us a little bit of a look at the positions Guðjohnsen tends to take up around the pitch.
For Lyngby, the 22-year-old has been playing as a pure centre-forward, with this being where he excels at the most.
While the majority of his actions have occurred inside and around the penalty area, the Icelandic international will also roam around the attacking third of the pitch, with Guðjohnsen also getting touches in deeper positions in midfield or in the wide channels.
Standing at 6’2”, Guðjohnsen is very good in the air, with the striker attempting the most shots with his head in the Danish Superliga this season.
The Icelandic forward can somewhat be characterised as a penalty box poacher, but he offers much more to Gent or whatever club signs him, as this scout report will show as it progresses.
Andri Guðjohnsen Style Of Play
Being a centre-forward, you need to be good at putting the ball in the back of the net, and this is something that Andri Guðjohnsen has a knack for doing.
The Icelandic international forward is very much a penalty box poacher striker, with a lot of his finishes being based around quick reactions to get in front of defenders and put shots away.
However, he also is not afraid to attempt shots around the edge of the penalty area or even outside of it.
The data viz graphic above shows the shot map from the 22-year-old this season, looking at the typical areas where he tends to take shots.
As we can see, most of his attempts on targets and goals have come between the posts, with most of his attempts coming from the edge of the six-yard box or around the penalty spot.
Guðjohnsen has managed to score three goals this season from the edge of the penalty area or just inside of it, though this tends to be a rarity.
The image above shows an example of this poacher ability inside the six-yard box that Andri Guðjohnsen possesses.
In this phase of play above, the ball starts in possession of the Lyngby wide player just on the edge of the six-yard box.
Guðjohnsen’s run starts right near the penalty spot, in between the two opposition centre-backs.
As the wide player looks to play a pass across the face of goal, the Icelandic striker makes a run towards the near post area.
In many situations like this, the defender, who starts on the goal-side of the striker, would be able to clear the ball away from danger, but Guðjohnsen’s intelligent movement off the ball allows him to reach the ball first, as well as the physicality that he possesses.
He is able to use his physicality to muscle past the centre-back, reaching the ball first and redirecting the ball into the back of the net with his first touch.
The image above shows another example of this penalty box poaching ability that Andri Guðjohnsen possesses.
In this phase of play above, which was the second phase of a corner from Lyngby, Guðjohnsen does something similar to the first example that was shown.
The initial ball from the corner kick goes well over everyone, finding its way to the Lyngby player that was positioned on the back post.
As the ball is making its way over everyone, the Icelandic forward again adjusts his run, this time moving into the space between the defender that is detached and the player marking the front post area.
Guðjohnsen is able to get the goal side at the near post area, with the striker able to strike a ferocious volley first time into the net past the goalkeeper, who has no time to react.
As this section has been able to show, Andri Guðjohnsen is very much a penalty box poacher type of striker.
The 22-year-old possesses innate movements off the ball to get to the goal side of defenders, as well as displays a physicality that has made him a nightmare for opposition defenders in the Danish Superliga this campaign.
Big time aerial presence
Something that was briefly discussed earlier in this analysis was how Guðjohnsen leads the Danish league in headed attempts on goal.
To be more specific, the striker has put 28 headers on target this season, seven more than the next highest in Denmark.
This also makes the Icelandic international a huge threat on set pieces and corner kicks, particularly with Guðjohnsen scoring three goals from them this season.
The image shown above will be broken down into two parts, with the initial one shown above.
In this phase of play for Lyngby, which comes from a corner kick played short, Guðjohnsen is circled in the middle of the group of players, with the 22-year-old marked closely by an opposition defender.
When it comes to the striker’s ability in the air, a lot of his dominance in the air does not necessarily come from his 6’2” frame.
Guðjohnsen does well in adjusting his body position off the ball and gaining separation from defenders in order to set himself up for either free headers or headed attempts on target that are minimally challenged by defenders.
This next image shows what happens after the ball gets played into the penalty area towards Guðjohnsen.
Before the ball is able to reach the forward, he does well to use the defender’s momentum against him, with the Icelandic international able to push off the defender without fully outstretching his arm to gain a yard of space without getting called for a foul.
While in this specific instance, the header from Guðjohnsen is rather tame and easy for the goalkeeper to claim, this example is still able to display the trouble he can cause opposition defences with his presence and intelligent aerial play.
When talking about how dominant Andri Guðjohnsen is aerially, the image shown above perfectly encapsulates the threat he possesses when crosses are aimed at him from the wide areas.
In this phase of play above, the Icelandic striker’s initial movement is very good, with the forward doing something that we have seen plenty of times throughout this scout report: making a run between defenders.
After making one of the trademark movements the 22-year-old forward always seems to make, Guðjohnsen can outjump the opposition centre-back when the cross comes towards him into the box while putting just the slightest amount of pressure on his back so he does not get called for a foul.
The result was a bullet header past the goalkeeper and into the far corner.
Andri Guðjohnsen has been a dominant force from an aerial perspective this season, and this is another one of the strengths that the 22-year-old Icelandic forward has as a part of his skill set.
At Gent, they lost an aerial presence in Hugo Cuypers, so if he were to join the Belgian side, he would be able to offer them something that they missed at times from the forward position in the second half of this season.
Andri Guðjohnsen Movement off the ball and ability to link play
Andri Guðjohnsen is not just a striker who sits inside and around the edge of the penalty box, waiting for services to come towards him in these areas.
He will also drift around the pitch and look for pockets to receive possession and link play.
The data viz graphic above shows Guðjohnsen’s pass map in all competitions for Lyngby this season.
As we can see, he has completed passes in all areas of the attacking third, whether in zone 14 centrally just outside the penalty area, his movement into the half spaces, or out wide to receive possession.
The Icelandic international has also dropped into the defensive half of the pitch to receive possession, though this does not occur often.
The image above shows an example of Andri Guðjohnsen’s ability playing back to goal.
In this phase of play above, the striker drops off the back line and into midfield, receiving possession with his back to goal and the centre-back putting pressure on him from behind.
In this specific passing sequence, Guðjohnsen does well to stay on his feet despite being knocked off balance by the defender.
This next image shows what happens as the play progresses.
Guðjohnsen does well to bounce off the defender’s challenge and stay upright before looking towards the nearside of the pitch and switching the play to the fullback, making an advanced run in the wide channel.
Guðjohnsen’s bounce pass allows Lyngby to escape the pressure, with the ball able to be progressed into the penalty area as a result of good ball circulation from the Danish side, with Guðjohnsen being one of the key factors in this attacking move.
The image above shows another example of the ball distribution capabilities that Andri Guðjohnsen possesses.
In this phase of play above, the Icelandic striker starts in a deeper position, running onto a ball played back into his path by the more advanced forward.
Guðjohnsen is able to spot the run of the player in the wide channel unmarked early, allowing him to play a first-time pass to help the attacking move continue to progress.
As this section has been able to show, it is not just his ability in front of goal that makes him an attractive prospect for a club like Gent.
While he is not yet the finished article when it comes to his ability to link play together, examples like the ones shown above illustrate the potential Guðjohnsen has to continue developing this part of his game.
Conclusion
As this tactical analysis and scout report has illustrated, Gent could do with a striker in their ranks like Andri Guðjohnsen.
The former Real Madrid youth player has begun to develop into a very good striker, and it would be wise for Gent to secure his services in the summer if possible.
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