Jeremie Frimpong vs Conor Bradley: there’s a CLEAR winner

Jeremie Frimpong is heading towards Liverpool by the looks of things.

According to numerous reports now, including Paul Joyce writing in The Times, Richard Hughes is ready to trigger the £30m release clause in the Dutch international's contract.

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This is a bargain for a player who has been one of the most exciting young stars in the Bundesliga over the last few seasons.

Frimpong is extremely talented and definitely helps to fill the void left behind by Trent Alexander-Arnold. Because that is the role Anfield Watch understands Liverpool expect him to occupy.

Despite suggestions he could play further forward, or even be used as a back-up option to Mohamed Salah, he's going to be playing as a right-back.

But is he coming in as the club's first choice? Or as competition for Conor Bradley?

That's a question that is a lot more difficult to answer. On paper, Bradley seems like the first choice at the moment because he has been playing as a right-back for most of his career - whereas Frimpong has played in a lot more of an advanced position over the last couple of years.

But the answer for who should start out of Bradley and Frimpong is not that simple. There is a clear winner and it's actually a surprising one.

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Jeremie Frimpong vs Conor Bradley

First of all because both Frimpong and Bradley are going to be tasked with defending we are going to be looking at their defensive data.

One of the initial aspect that stands-out about both of them is that they are very quick. They are both not necessarily the best one vs one defenders but even if they are beaten, they can use their speed to track back and make recovery runs.

This makes them a difficult opponent. Especially, when a winger tries to take them on around the flanks. So, they limit an attacker's option to going inside - where there is normally cover in the form of Ryan Graveberch or Ibrahima Konate.

In terms of the numbers, it might surprise you to know that the difference is marginal this season.

Frimpong has won 0.97 tackles per 90 minutes this season while attempting 1.28 tackles per 90. Bradley has averaged a slightly higher return - winning 1.43 tackles per 90 while also attempting more (1.87 per 90).

In terms of the tackle percentages, this puts Frimpong at succeeding in 55% of the tackles he attempts, meanwhile Bradley succeeds in 50%.

The current Liverpool right-back makes more recoveries (6 per 90) compared to Frimpong (3.27 per 90) but this could be very role dependant.

When you really crunch the numbers and look at the duos' defending, not much separates them. Bradley might edge it, but only slightly.

Which may surprise people because Bradley is regarded as a good defender among the general consensus, while Frimpong is widely seen as bad.

But these perceptions are mired in people with no analytical skill and hardly based on reality.

Frimpong vs Bradley - how do they compare going forward?

This is where again the answer isn't necessarily straightforward, despite how things may seem. On paper, of course Frimpong is the better attacker. Even delving into the numbers, he seems to be better than Bradley, but not by much.

Liverpool's man is very good going forward. Using his explosive speed, he bombs up and down the channels and sometimes reminds you of Gareth Bale at his very best.

In terms of progressive numbers, Bradley averages four progressive carries per 90 minutes, which is actually marginally better than Frimpong (3.89 per 90).

They are both players who like to go on the outside but also find their way into the box.

Frimpong has averaged 0.16 xG per 90 minutes this season, Bradley is not that far behind at 0.09 per 90. Last season, this number was at 0.11 xG for Bradley, which is even closer to Frimpong.

Creatively, Frimpong's 0.18 xA per 90 is double that of Bradley's (0.09 per 90) this season. However, last season Bradley was a lot closer at 0.14 xA.

For key passes this season, Bradley has averaged 0.71 per 90 as opposed to 1.17 per 90 for Frimpong. But last season, Bradley averaged 1.79 per 90.

Obviously, we are including Bradley's numbers from last season here because it's unfair to judge him on this season alone, when he's struggled with injuries and has been in and out of the team.

Last season's numbers represent the potential he has and the player he could become.

For now, in terms of the data, Frimpong is the clear winner because of his offensive output and because not much separates the two defensively, which is probably not what people expect to read.

But in the long-term Bradley absolutely has the potential to become as good as Frimpong, if not even better.

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It's going to be fascinating to see them battle it out next season.