At the beginning of the 2021/22 Belgian Pro League season, a 17-year-old Malick Fofana was handed his senior debut by Gent boss Hein Vanhaezebrouck. Fofana ended last campaign with 19 appearances in all competitions, with the now 18-year-old already matching his total in the league this season as we approach the winter break in Belgian football.
In all competitions so far this season, Fofana has four goals and six assists, with him becoming one of Gent’s key players and showing his development on the attacking side of his game in his second full season in Belgian football.
This tactical analysis and scout report will take a more detailed look at Malick Fofana’s style of play, how he fits into Hein Vanhaezebrouck’s tactics, and the strengths and weaknesses of the Belgian U21 international.
Positional overview & fit in Vanhaezrbouck’s tactics
Regarding a preferred position for Malick Fofana, he has excelled playing as a left midfielder or left wing-back for Hein Vanhaezebrouck and Gent.
The data viz graphic above shows the touch map of Malick Fofana this season in all competitions for Gent. As the graphic illustrates, most of the 18-year-old’s touches have occurred on the left side of the pitch, with a lot of his actions coming close to the touchline. Vanhaezebrouck prefers to set his Gent side up in a 3-4-1-2 formation, with Fofana being deployed as the left wing-back/left midfielder.
With the way Gent prefer to play, the wide midfielders look to hold the width, with Fofana tasked with taking on defenders and often being isolated 1v1 against opposition fullbacks. He also sends plenty of crosses into the box per 90 minutes, with deliveries from wide areas, which is another tactic Vanhaezebrouck’s Gent side often does. Fofana also demonstrates an excellent work rate, with the Belgian youth international working tirelessly up and down the left flank.
This season has turned into a breakout campaign for Fofana, with Vanhaezebrouck seeming to fully trust the 18-year-old with plenty of minutes and a lot of starts across all competitions since being handed his senior debut by the Belgian manager at the start of the 2021/22 season. As this scout report and analysis progresses, we will look in more detail at some of Fofana’s strengths while also analysing where the 18-year-old still needs to improve as he gains more senior minutes.
Dribbling ability
The first trait that we will look at in Malick Fofana’s style of play is the 18-year-old’s dribbling and ability in 1v1 duels while being isolated against opposition defenders. With Fofana looking to keep the width for Gent and hug the left touchline, the 18-year-old often finds himself in positions in the final third where he is isolated against opposition defenders, and this is where he has begun to refine his dribbling ability.
The data viz graphic above shows the ball progression of Malick Fofana in all competitions this season, more explicitly dribbling and progressive runs. As we can see, most of Fofana’s successful dribbles and progressive runs have occurred in the final third, more specifically near the edge of the penalty box. However, Fofana will also drift centrally and look to attempt dribbles in this area of the pitch, as well as not being afraid to dribble past opposition defenders inside his own defensive half. When looking at the stats, the Belgian U21 international is averaging 6.75 dribbles per 90 minutes over the course of his senior career so far, with a success rate of 62.2%.
The figure above shows Malick Fofana’s 1v1 dribbling ability in action from a previous league match against OH Leuven. In the phase of play shown above, the 18-year-old receives possession close to the near touchline before cutting inside to face up the opposing defender. Fofana proceeds to drive inside before faking a cross and cutting back onto his left foot. This allowed the Gent wide midfielder to drive into the space behind the Leuven defence while getting the ball back on his preferred left foot to deliver a cross into the penalty area.
The image above shows another example from the same match, but another common tendency for Fofana when faced up against an opposition defender. Again, the 18-year-old is isolated against the Leuven defender, with Fofana receiving possession after getting onto the end of a ball sent into his path. The defender expects Fofana, in this situation, to receive possession and commit to taking him on. However, Fofana does not. Instead, the Belgian U21 international uses a burst of pace, acceleration, and a perfectly weighted touch to drive past the defender on the outside. As a result, Fofana is able to reach the ball as it gets close to the endline, with the 18-year old with him able to send a cutback cross towards the penalty spot and into a dangerous area for Gent.
The figure above shows another example of Malick Fofana’s dribbling ability, this time from their recent final UEFA Europa Conference League group stage match against Israeli side Maccabi Tel Aviv. In this phase of play, the 18-year-old received possession on the far touchline, with him again faced up 1v1 against an opposition defender. Like the previous example, instead of looking to take the defender on and beat him with skill, Fofana uses a burst of acceleration to drive past the defender on the outside, moving into the vacant space behind the defence where he had space to attempt a cross.
As this section has illustrated, Malick Fofana has begun to refine his dribbling ability as he gathers more senior minutes for Gent. The 18-year-old is not afraid to take opposition defenders on 1v1. Still, he also can use his rapid pace and acceleration to lure defenders in before driving past them and into space behind the defence.
Dangerous when given time and space to cross
The strongest trait that Malick Fofana possesses is his crossing ability from the wide channels, whether under pressure or when given time and space to operate on the ball. His dribbling and pace allow him the ability to get into favourable crossing positions, but he also has excellent end product when getting into these positions, something that is not often common with players of his age in this position.
The data viz graphic above displays the frequent crossing zones of Fofana throughout all competitions for Gent this season. As we can see from the figure, most of his crosses have come from the left side, with it rare that the 18-year-old finds himself on the right side of the pitch. Another critical thing to look at is the successful crosses from Fofana, with most of his crosses aimed towards the back post area. This is deliberate from the 18-year-old, with Gent’s attackers looking to overload this back post area to be more clinical in chance creation. Throughout his senior career so far, Fofana has averaged 3.97 crosses per 90 minutes, with 36.8% being accurate, a figure that could be slightly improved.
The image above shows an example of the type of crosses Malick Fofana is capable of sending into the penalty area when allowed even minimal time and space on the ball. An example of this quality is shown in this phase of play against OH Leuven. After taking on the opposition defender and creating a slight amount of space, the Belgian U21 international sent a delightful cross towards the back post area, with the ball finding its way to the opposite wing-back, Alessio Castro-Montes. As a result, the Belgian wing-back is able to head the ball in at the back post, with the delivery from Fofana inch perfect.
The image above shows another example of Fofana’s ability on the ball in dangerous areas, this time highlighting his ability to send dangerous crosses into the box with both feet. In this phase of play above against RWDM, Fofana receives possession in the wide channel from a long diagonal ball over the top of the opposition defence. Instead of looking to take the defender on and look to get into a more favourable position to cross with his favoured left foot, the 18-year old instead cuts inside, with the defender affording him the space.
After taking a touch inside, and without the opposition defender looking to put him under pressure, Fofana sends a cross towards the penalty spot with his weaker right foot, putting the ball right in the area between the penalty spot and the six-yard box. Though no Gent player can get their head onto the cross, it still displays Fofana’s ability to use both feet, which makes the 18-year-old unpredictable for opposition defenders in these situations.
A final example above shows Fofana’s ability to again perfectly weigh crosses into the path of his teammates. In this phase of play against RWDM, the 18-year-old is on the edge of the penalty area, with the defender not looking to put much pressure on the Belgian youth international. The opposition defence is looking to hold their line, hoping to catch a Gent runner offside. The ensuing cross from Fofana is played with just the right amount of pace and put into an area inside the six-yard box that does not allow the opposition goalkeeper to come out and claim. As a result, two players are able to then make runs onto the cross, with the ball reaching the back post area before Hugo Cuypers puts the ball into the back of the net.
As this section has illustrated, Malick Fofana is very good when crossing the ball into dangerous areas in the penalty box while also exhibiting the ability to be unpredictable, with this down to his two-footedness in these dangerous areas. While he still has room to improve, his crossing ability is one of the most vital traits the 18-year-old possesses.
Weaknesses
Regarding Malick Fofana’s weaknesses, one of the most prevalent ones is his lack of quality in aerial duels, which we will cover in detail in this section. When looking at the statistics over the course of his career, the 18-year-old is only averaging 0.77 aerial duels per 90 minutes, with a success rate of 13.5%. Standing at 5’7″, height is not on the Belgian youth international’s side when it comes to this statistic.
The graphic above shows the defensive actions and average line of defensive engagement for the 18-year-old Gent this season. While Fofana may not be the strongest regarding aerial duels, the Belgian U21 international does hold his own from a defensive perspective. However, it is an area of his game that he could improve on as he matures and gathers more senior football experience. When it comes to defensive duels, Fofana is averaging five defensive duels per 90 minutes, with a success rate of 63.2%, illustrating Fofana’s ability to hold his own and even excel at times from a defensive standpoint.
To look more closely at where more of the 18-year-old’s weaknesses may lie, the pizza plot above shows how the wing-back ranks against other players in his position in similar leagues to the Belgian league. As we can see, from an attacking perspective, Fofana is near the top in all of the metrics, showing his elite attacking attributes as a wing-back. Looking at the possession metrics, Fofana is more in the middle or lower upper tier when it comes to these metrics, as he could potentially improve these as he gathers more minutes. As mentioned, defensively is where most of Fofana’s weaknesses lie, with only defensive duels winning % the metric where he ranks in the top half of all players in his position in a similar quality league.
Overall, Malick Fofana is not the finished product, as he is still only 18 years of age and is only in his second season of senior football. While the positives heavily outweigh the negatives, Fofana still has some areas where he could look to improve in the near future.
Conclusion
Though there have not been many rumours circling as of yet of Malick Fofana moving on from Gent in the near future, potentially next summer, his performance so far this season surely would have attracted the interest of some bigger clubs around Europe. He has gone from strength to strength in his second full season under Hein Vanhaezebrouck, though he is not yet the finished product. Though a move to a consistent team in the UEFA Europa League would be the next best step in his development, a move to team competing in the UEFA Champions League should not be ruled out.
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