Everton Stats: Scouting Rumoured Toffees Transfer Target Victor Moses

Everton are renowned for being one of the quieter movers during recent transfer windows, generally making a small impact towards the end of a market. However, with Roberto Martinez now at the helm, the Toffees have seemingly bucked the trend with a flurry of early acquisitions.

Arouna Kone has been joined at the Toffees by former teammates Antolin Alcaraz and Joel Robles, as Martinez begins to shape his new squad in a different image. And it doesn't appear these signings will be the last.

Another name linked to the Toffees on a couple of occasions over the summer is Chelsea's attacking midfielder: Victor Moses. The most recent rumour came from Simon Jones of the Daily Mail, who claims Everton are "close" to an £8 million move.

This still seems to be pure speculation, for now, but in the event of there being genuine substance in this particular whisper, how does Moses match up statistically with Everton's current wingers?

Stats

Moses primarily attacks from a flank, in a similar manner to Kevin Mirallas for Everton. Here are some of his Premier League numbers from last season compared with Mirallas, Steven Pienaar and Arouna Kone, who are all likely to feature out wide for the Toffees at some stage this year.

The first point to note is just how punctuated Moses' season was at Chelsea. He featured in 23 league games but was only on the field for the equivalent of 12-and-a-half games in terms of minutes played.

It's always going to be hard finding consistency like this, which is never ideal for a young player still developing his game. However these are always likely to be the conditions at a top side like Chelsea.

He clearly hasn't been as influential when it comes to end product as he'd like, scoring once and setting up just one other goal, which is surprising at a team like Chelsea where's he's likely to be on the attack more often. The year before he scored six at Wigan and set up another.

He's had a decent amount of opportunities to register more goals, averaging a couple of shots over 90 minutes but, certainly in the Premier League, his shooting was rather wayward last year and his chance conversion and creative impact are all down from his time at Wigan. He did, however, manage four goals in six Europa League games for Chelsea, and another in the Champions League.

Moses' forte is clearly his dribbling which, of these players, only Mirallas can better him in terms of frequency. He is harder to dispossess than the other three players and is more accurate at maintaining possession and finding a man in the final third.

However, his dribble success rate is still the lowest here, as is his crossing, which can only be described as wild last year. Overall there is little in numerical terms to suggest he would be a worthwhile signing, although this doesn't tell the entire story.

Conclusion

While the statistics reveal just how erratic Moses has been, his season is quite typical of a bit-part player, especially as young as 22, and it shouldn't necessarily prevent him from being an exciting purchase for Everton should they target him. He's a rhythm player and without a guarantee of action his game has naturally suffered.

Were he to join Everton and be provided with a consistent run of games he would almost certainly flourish and revert to his impressive form of the year before, matching the production levels of the likes of Mirallas in these numbers. He is still a developing prospect with considerable potential, only likely to improve in value and ability once regularly playing.

Roberto Martinez has already coaxed out his best form during his time at Wigan and if he had an opportunity to do so again there's nothing to suggest he wouldn't prove to be a sound investment.

Stylistically he also fits the approach Martinez would be likely to introduce at Everton. Under the Spaniard, it seems unlikely Marouane Fellaini will be deployed behind a striker much longer. If he remains at the club he will surely drop back into his preferred position in defensive midfield, leaving the striker supported by a more technical trio behind him, all capable of maintaining a far more fluent style.

Two of that three are all but certain to be Pienaar and Mirallas, while Kone could play there or as Everton's striker. However, aside from Leon Osman, there is a sudden lack of depth behind these options.

An injury to one and suddenly the Toffees are stuck playing inexperienced options or using players out of position, which is why a move for Moses, or a player of similar ilk, makes a lot of sense.

Away from the statistics Moses is a versatile, skillful and powerful option with an explosive game. He has certainly been sporadic in his production, but he is a player capable of flashes of individual brilliance and the more he's nurtured and placed faith in, the more frequently those flashes will shine.

Statistics via EPL Index and WhoScored. 

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