Digging deeper into Baradji

Moussa Baradji’s start to life at Blackburn Rovers wasn’t ideal but once he got up and running, there were signs of what he can bring to Ewood Park in the long run.

The midfielder arrived from Switzerland last summer but his early months in Lancashire were impacted by an ankle injury, which required surgery.

Baradji got his first taste of Championship football in the victory against Preston North End at Deepdale last November, coming off the bench for the final minutes.

The 25-year-old continued to build up his sharpness in the following weeks and went on to make 32 appearances in the league, with 18 of those coming from the start.

Now that Rovers have made Baradji’s loan move from Yverdon-Sport permanent, The Lancashire Telegraph takes a closer look at his start to life in English football, why the club wanted to keep him around and how they can get the best out of him next season.

Baradji chipped in with a couple of goals from midfield. Both came in a 2-2 draw against Charlton Athletic at Ewood Park in January.

He has played in several midfield roles since heading to Ewood Park but that day, the Frenchman was utilised higher up the pitch.

That tweak was evident in both of his goals. The first came from a header in the box and the second was a shot from just outside, making the most of his freedom to get forward.

However, a portion of Baradji’s appearances last season came in a deeper role where his opportunities to join the attack were fewer.

According to his Opta heatmap, the 25-year-old’s most frequent areas of the pitch were dropping deeper defensively and drifting into the wide areas in attack.

Baradji celebrates one of his goals against Charlton (Image: CameraSport - Richard Martin-Roberts)

He attempted 37 shots in total, of which 20 came from inside the penalty area, and hit the target on 11 occasions. Moreover, four of those shots came from counter attacks and four from corners.

Baradji averaged 1.2 shots per game in the league. Of those who made at least five starts, only Yuki Ohashi, Todd Cantwell, Ryoya Morishita and Andri Gudjohnsen took on more shots per game.

Despite those figures, the midfielder's expected goals (xG) figure was only slightly higher than the two he scored, which suggests that he didn't have many clear-cut opportunities in the final third.

Baradji told the club after his move was made permanent that he wants to add more goals and assists to his game next season.

Perhaps the key for Rovers will be giving him more freedom to get higher up the pitch and make his mark, particularly in the central areas.

There is also an argument that he is better suited to a deeper role, where other aspects of his game can come to the fore.

Some of Baradji’s defensive numbers were eye-catching. He won 140 duels, including 50 tackles and 49 aerial duels, for example.

That work was crucial after Sondre Tronstad’s injury. Tronstad ranked highly in the squad for tackles and interceptions, offering important protection to the backline.

It could also be argued that playing in a deeper role best utilises Baradji’s dribbling ability, allowing him to drive Rovers up the pitch.

The midfielder carried out 16 successful dribbles in the Championship. Moreover, he attempted 1.4 dribbles per game, which puts him near the top of the squad.

READ MORE: The Blackburn Rovers players with most minutes in Championship this season

In terms of creativity, Baradji carved out nine chances last season but only two of those were considered ‘big chances’.

He attempted around 22 passes per game, on average, which was fewer than Tronstad, Adam Forshaw and Taylor Gardner-Hickman.

Baradji’s pass accuracy of 79.5 per cent was near the top end of the squad but again below Tronstad and Forshaw.

The Frenchman took some time to adjust to the demands of Championship football – which is often the case for new recruits – but showed enough to persuade Rovers that he can be a long-term success story at Ewood Park.

He will no doubt be in a better place with a full pre-season under his belt and the experiences of the past year to build on.

Whoever takes charge at Ewood Park this summer has a decision to make in terms of Baradji’s best role and where he can have the biggest impact, but there is certainly talent there if Rovers can crack the code.