Beyond Goals

Saer Sene (right) has been the 7th best player in MLS this season according to the Castrol Index. (Photo: Tony Biscaia/RevsNet)

A quick glance at the MLS Castrol Index might reveal a bit of a surprise in the overall top ten: New England Revolution striker Saër Sène. Sene, who is in a bit of a scoring drought with just one goal since the end of May, currently ranks seventh – down from fourth last week – in the “Official Performance Index of Major League Soccer”.

So what makes Sene’s ranking so high? The index tracks every move on the field – an average of 1,800 player movements per match – and according to one of the official Castrol analysts, who provided an analysis of Sene’s play to New England Soccer Today,  Sene has stood out in three categories that make him among the best in MLS.

The first category is obvious: goal scoring. Sene leads the Revs and is tied for eighth overall with eight goals. But the index looks beyond the numbers and factors in “the ‘quality’ of each goal in terms of scoring chance in each of the situations that he scored” as well as minutes played. Such a metric actually brings Sene below the eighth ranking his raw total would give him and places him at 15th in MLS.

Sene places higher in per minute shots on target, which Castrol counts as “potential goals”. In fact, Sene places 10th in this category, while league leading scorer Chris Wondolowski is 27th, despite leading MLS in the raw stat of shots on target.

The more hidden factor in Sene’s high ranking is “duels won”.

According to Opta, “A duel is an 50-50 contest between two players of opposing sides in the match. For every Duel Won there is a corresponding Duel Lost depending on the outcome of the Duel.”

Sene ranks 20th in duels won, while Wondolowski (the Index’s top ranked player) doesn’t break the top 100.

Perhaps more apparent to close followers of the Revolution, is Sene’s success in passing. According to Castrol, Sene ranks 188th in MLS in good passes – an impressive total for a forward – compared to 408th for Wondolowski.

The Castrol Index ranking is a bit of a contrast to how Sene has fared in New England Soccer Today’s player ratings this season. On average, the Frenchman’s rating places him firmly in the middle of the pack among Revs players. Of course, player ratings are subjective, while the Castrol Index, relying on stats, is theoretically more objective. But which is right?

 Loading ...

One Comment