Angel Di Maria vs Cesc Fabregas | Stats Comparison

The transfer window was eventful as ever this summer with lots of big money changing hands and star players changing uniforms.  Two of the biggest deals of players coming into the Barclays Premier League were Chelsea’s acquisition of Cesc Fabregas and Manchester United’s new record signing of Angel Di Maria.  With the likes of Luis Suarez and Gareth Bale leaving the Premier League in the last two summers it is always great to see that the Premier League can in fact still attract the best players from around the world.

The transfer window has now been closed for over a month and both players have had some time to play a few games and get used to their new clubs.  Seven games into the new season and neither of the two former La Liga stars have shown any ill effects from the intensity of the Premier League.  Both seem to have skipped the adjustment period and gone straight to being stars.  Can Fabregas’s form help Chelsea to the title or can Di Maria lead back to the Champions League? You can back United or Chelsea on Betfair! Both players have started well, but who has started better?

Creativity

Angel Di Maria played centrally for the majority of last season, but he has been a winger for the majority of his career and has been used in more of a wide role at Manchester United.  Fabregas on the other hand plays centrally for Chelsea, but both are extremely good on the ball and can create chances out of nothing.

Thus far, Di Maria has actually had a slightly better creation rate than Fabregas with the Argentine creating a chance every 25 minutes and the Spaniard creating a chance every 28 minutes.  Despite playing wide, Di Maria is still an elite creator.  He has the pace and the skill to beat a man and make others commit then has the eye for a killer pass to put a teammate in.  Fabregas of course is also a world class creator and a chance created every 28 minutes is still phenomenal. However Fabregas can’t be touched in creating goals he’s had seven assists already and is creating a goal per game which really is unheard and it will be interesting to see if he can continue this run. Fabregas has a significantly better pass completion percentage than Manchester United’s big money signing.  That is actually the more telling stat when it comes to their different playing styles.  Since the former Arsenal man plays centrally, he controls the game along with playing as the main creator for the side.

Goalscoring

In terms of goal scoring, Angel Di Maria has the edge with his three goals compared to Fabregas, who is yet to score for Chelsea in the league.  Di Maria has scored 21.4% of his shots for Manchester United.  The Argentine has scored some phenomenal goals for United already, most notably his chip against Leicester City.  While Fabregas has yet to score in the league, he has been on target with a higher percentage of his shots than the Manchester United man.  The Spaniard’s propensity to play deeper, dictate play, and set up teammates can restrict his scoring numbers.  The former Barcelona man has always prided himself more on the chances he sets up for others than the ones he scores himself.

Both players have come into the league, settled straight away, and had a positive influence on their respective teams.  Both of these two are top quality players and will inevitably both fair well in the Premier League.  They have both already changed their respective sides with their personal abilities as well as the lifts they’ve given their clubs.