Thomas Isherwood Scout Report
Our scout report focuses today on the robust Swedish center back, Thomas Isherwood, currently serving in the backline for SV Darmstadt in the Bundesliga. At 26, Isherwood shows commendable strength in Ball Retention, outperforming 87.8% of his peers, making him an effective defender in possession. He also displays notable efficiency in Progressive Carrying, outmatching 71.6% of center-backs in the league, indicating his ability to effectively link defence and midfield, an increasingly vital skill for modern center backs.
However, Isherwood's performance exhibits a contrasting picture. Alarmingly, he ranks low in terms of Ball Recovery and Progressive Passing, standing in the bottom 5% of the league, suggesting that he struggles to win back possession and fails to connect well with the forward lines. His Goals Threat is significantly low, but not surprising given his primary role as defender.
Additionally, his performance in duels leaves room for improvement, as he has won only around half of his duels, potentially making him susceptible to vigorous forwards. Isherwood commits a slight number of fouls, however, finds himself on the safe side with yellow cards, showing controlled aggression in his style of play.
In terms of areas of possession, Isherwood mostly commanded the defensive third of the pitch in the season. His strong presence in the midfield third also reveals a decent level of involvement outside of his defensive duties, a testament to his progressive carrying play. But his poor activity in the attacking third matches our earlier sentiment that he hardly poses a threat on goal.
In conclusion, Isherwood can be a dominant and reliable force in defense while still being a strong ball-carrier, but his weak ball recovery and passing abilities, plus his struggle with aerial duels should be areas of focus in training.