360 Player Report: Marouane Fellaini

Player Profile

Full name: Marouane Fellaini-Bakkioui

Date of birth: 22 November 1987 (age 25)

Place of birth: Etterbeek, Belgium

Height: 1.94 m (6 ft 4 1⁄2 in)

Playing position: Midfielder

Player Biography

Marouane Fellani is a Belgian player who plays for Everton and the Belgium national football team. He was Born in Etterbeek, Brussels to Moroccan parents.  He played youth football for R.A.E.C. Mons, Royal Francs Borains and Charleroi S.C. before joining Standard Liege. After winning the Belgian First Division and the Ebony Shoe whilst a Liège player, he moved to England to join Everton FC. At Everton he was the club’s Young Player of the Season for 2008–09, when the club were losing finalists in the FA Cup. As a result, he was listed 60th in The 100 best footballers in the world by The Guardian.

Fellaini was eligible to play for either Belgium or Morocco but, He chose to represent Belgium, the country of his birth, from youth level upwards to the first team. He represented the U-23 team at the 2008 Olympics and achieved 4th place, losing to Brazil in the process. His senior team debut was made in February 2007, and his first goal for the senior team came in a 2–1 defeat against Portugal in the UEFA Euro 2008 qualification.

Probability of a move to Chelsea FC

As we all now by now, Marouane Fellaini has been in Chelsea’s radars for over a year  to strengthen our midfield. Everton valued his price as minimum as for 20 million pound last summer and many top teams like Manchester United, Manchester City and Real Madrid have been rumored to buy Fellaini and offer him champions league football. The player himself has said before that he would very much consider playing for a team that fights for trophies every season and more importantly, a team that plays in the Champions League. Chelsea are considered in that category of his as he can earn a good salary and play in the Champions League. We have Mikel, Ramires, Lampard and David Luiz to play in the double pivot in midfield but, adding a top player like Fellaini will surely help the squad in terms of depth in order to challenge for many trophies. And 20 million is a good value for a player of his talent. He signed for Everton from R.S.C. Anderlecht in 2008 as a 20 year old and has since developed in the premier league by quickly adapting to the physical aspect of English football. Five seasons of regular first team experience means he has proven himself that he is ready to perform well at a top team like Chelsea and for that reason I think Chelsea could make a bid for him this summer.

Playing Style

Fellaini has often been dubbed ‘unplayable’ and his excellent chest control has been noted. He is a versatile performer who possesses excellent technique and is a presence both defensively and offensively – regardless of whether being played as a holding midfielder or in more advanced positions. In addition, he is really good at Headers and that trait of his was in display when he scored the winner against Manchester United for Everton in the first week of the EPL. He can pass and shoot comfortably with both feet and he is very technical and agile for someone at his size.

Strengths

1. Headers- we have talked about his aerial ability already and many of you have seen how dangerous he is when Everton get a corner kick or when he decides to help out his strikers in further advanced areas of the pitch.

2. Vision- he is not a traditional type of no.10 player but, when his manager had instructed him to play behind the striker, he has done a magnificent job by providing assists and orchestrating his teams’ midfield area. He sometimes wastes positions, but, he is good at ground balls when he crosses and plays in trough balls to his team mates.

3- Strength- Fellaini is 6 ft 4 1⁄2 in and he is extremely good at physically and on  one-on-one challenges with defenders. At the Manchester United game in Goodson park, he was voted man-of-the-match and united defenders simply couldn’t handle his runs when he breaks in through the defense. He has the speed and the strength that can tear up defenses and that’s why he has been so successful since he arrived in England.

Weaknesses

1. High Passing- I couldn’t think of a better football term to describe this but, all of you can understand what i meant by saying that he wastes many balls through out a game and you would understand it if you have seen him play for 90 minutes. He is not good at controlling balls by his feet like many classic midfielders can(not saying he is not good at controlling balls on his chest and heading)

2. Tackling- you would think that by a player of his size, he should now how to tackle with out fouling and receiving many bookings. But, he is the exact opposite as he has been booked  10 times in his first 17 games in his first season and he has avoided a lengthy suspension by attending a personal hearing with England’s chief referee, Kieth Hackett, where he vowed to improve his behavior.  And this can be an issue if we decide to play him in the double pivot, but he surely has improved his Technics in his five seasons at Everton. This might have been the reason that David Moyes decided to play as an attacking midfielder instead of as a defensive in his recent years at Everton.

3. Discipline- Fellaini is rarely calm and composure in a match as he gets into angry altercations with referees and opposing players when he is tackled. A fitting example would his infamous head butt on Stoker defender Ryan Shawcross while they were grappling for a header before a corner kick. The referee didn’t see the challenge but, Fellaini had received 3 or more games as a punishment from the FA. He needs to improve his professionalism and his style if he wants to be more successful at the top level. Acting and doing the things Mario Ballotelli does outside the pitch won’t help him at all as he has a great potential to become one of the greats of the young, new golden generation of Belgian Football.

Conclusion 

Fellaini would be a decent option to strengthen the midfield farther if the incoming manager, surely Jose Mourinho, decides to sell the returning Michael Essien. But if Essien returns to Chelsea after his loan is over, Fellani’s transfer would be unnecessary as we have Mikel and Ramires. Also we should keep in mind that young players like Nathaniel Chalobah and Josh McEachran will return to Stamford Bridge, and signing Fellaini could be a stumbling block for them to break into the first team. Overall, He would be a good option for a transfer and we should buy him as he is very much versatile and can play across all areas in Midfield.

What are your opinions about Fellaini coming to Chelsea? Can he improve our squad when it comes to Premier League experience? sound of your opinions below in the comments section. Thanks for reading, KTBFFH