Sven Botman has become the latest addition to Eddie Howe’s Newcastle United, in a £32 million deal which has smashed the club-record signing for a defender. The 22-year-old is widely regarded as one of the most promising young defenders in the continent and is a player that the hierarchy at Newcastle United had earmarked as an important signing in the club’s search to close the gap between the Magpies and the Top Six.
Having started out at Ajax’s academy, and after a successful loan in the Eredivisie at Heerenveen, the left-footed centre-back has endured two excellent seasons at Lille. He was a key part of Lille’s Ligue 1 title win in 2021, which was followed by a circuit of rumours linking him with a move to a clutch of top clubs. The Dutchman chose to stay put in France, and although Lille wasn’t able to emulate their successes of 2021, Sven Botman was still one of the shining lights in Ligue 1.
A Natural Defender
Sven Botman is fundamentally an excellent defender. He’s evidently a player who enjoys the art of defending, and when watching him play, it seems like the 22-year-old is already mastering his craft.
“I think my strong point is my mentality to get clean sheets…I like to win duels, and I love being in duels with strikers”
Sven Botman, The Athletic
As any top defender should, the Dutchman has strong defensive fundamentals – and this desire to keep clean sheets is reflected in the way he plays the game. He’s strong in the tackle, he’s able to use his 6”4 frame to knock forwards off the ball, he’s a strong interceptor, and he’s one of the most aerially dominant centre-halves across Europe.
Botman wins 74.8% of his aerial duels, placing him in the 94th percentile of centre-backs across Europe’s Top 5 Leagues. Whether it’s winning an aerial duel with a striker on the halfway line, defending doggedly in his own area, or even being a goal threat in the opposing box – Botman is imperious in the air.
His slide-tackling has become a trait of his too, and it’s almost certainly derived from this aforementioned ability to read the game. He clearly trusts his ability to win the ball when going to ground, and is confident that he can time these risky interventions successfully when the ball is there to be won.
The key feature of Botman’s skillset, which sets him apart from his peers, is his defensive awareness and ability to read the game. Scanning is a skill taught to youngsters from an early age nowadays, to encourage players to constantly be aware of their surroundings. It’s where players take momentary glances of what’s around them to assess danger and absorb extra information.
It’s something which Botman seems to have learnt from his Ajax days, and it’s one of the reasons why the Dutchman is such a good covering defender. It allows him to understand the complete picture around him on the pitch, which then allows him to make consistently informed decisions.
As a result, Botman is usually well positioned to deal with runners in behind, and equally as importantly, he regularly makes good decisions in terms of when and how to intervene. Hence, Botman is able to rely on his awareness, positioning and intelligence to manage situations, rather than solely relying on physical attributes.
When he’s following opposing attackers into advanced areas in a 1v1 situation, Botman is typically very composed where he looks to show them to the outside, or a put a timely challenge in if needs be.
The bottom line with all of this is that Sven Botman truly is a very strong defender. Our defensive discipline at the end of last season played a huge part in our miraculous turnaround, and a Newcastle United defence that once looked so porous became one that consistently withstood pressure and kept clean sheets. The addition of a centre-back who’s as skilled, determined and solid as Botman will only strengthen that defensive mettle.
We’re in a time where centre-backs are picked for more than just their ability to keep the ball out of the net, creating scenarios where we sometimes watch centre-backs who are strangely defensively deficient. With Sven Botman however, we’ll have no such problems.
Is His Pace an Issue?
For all of Sven Botman’s excellence, there’s one nugget of criticism that always seems to pop up which needs addressing – his speed. The reality is that there is some truth in it, but it’s perhaps a bit overplayed.
Sven Botman’s sprint speed is not an issue at all. After a few strides, when he’s got up to full speed, his pace is more than satisfactory. It’s a regular feature in his highlight compilations – including this impressive recovery run against Ajax’s Antony.
Where the issue lies however, is with Botman’s acceleration, and ability to turn quickly. He’s a big lad, and sometimes his first few strides when retreating can sometimes be a bit cumbersome. He’s understandably not the most agile either, and this can be problematic when up against quick forwards – whether they’re running off his shoulder, or if they’re carrying the ball in a 1v1 scenario.
When he gets dragged out wide, Botman is sometimes a bit vulnerable. Wingers who can shift the ball quickly, and are able to change their pace unpredictably, can often get the better of the Dutchman by taking advantage of his lack of agility. The result is either that he gets beaten on the outside, or he dives in – conceding a free-kick and sometimes picking up a booking, like in the example below against Dijon.
Despite this, I still don’t think it should be a massive concern. We still operate with a mid-block, and I don’t expect that to change this season. Hence, we don’t leave a lot of space in behind, and therefore there is less ground for Botman to have to cover. In addition, we’ve added Nick Pope to the side – one of the most statistically aggressive sweepers in the Premier League, who will also help take charge of this space too.
Tidy and Progressive in Possession
Centre-backs in the twenty-first century are required to be comfortable on the ball, and the importance of defenders being of value in possession is greater than ever. Sven Botman fits into that mould perfectly – he’s slick with the ball at his feet, which is perhaps unsurprising given his roots to Ajax and their affliction with ‘total football’.
At Lille, he’d regularly stride out of defence with the ball at his feet, and look add impetus to their phases of possession. He’s a clean passer on either foot, and he has a good understanding of when to drive into midfield to create numerical superiority.
This bar chart from FBRef gives a brief indication of Botman’s passing performance relative to fellow centre-backs in Europe’s Top 5 Leagues. The key takeaway from this is the amount of passes he’s completing, and the accuracy at which he’s doing it. It’s reflective of his role in Lille’s build-up phase, and his ability to keep possession well while still being progressive.
He’s strong at threading delicate passes into a midfielder between the lines, and has the bravery coupled with quality to progress the ball in this manner. Similarly, he has a good understanding of when to move the ball wide, when to quicken the pace of an attack, or when to slow things down. Pep Guardiola regularly talks about players being able to “understand the rhythm” of football when in possession of the ball, and Botman seems to fit the bill in that respect.
The following pass map is an indication of Botman’s passing from the defensive third to midfield third in the 21/22 season. Clearly, he’s capable of accurately playing these progressive passes into midfield, and given how strong both Joelinton and Bruno Guimarães are on the half-turn, I’d imagine that we’ll see Botman sliding similar passes through into them.
Often what defines elite players is that they do the simple things well with exemplary consistency. The same applies to Botman in possession. His passes are crisp and accurate on either foot, and they’re always placed in front of the receiver, so they can take it in their stride. It’s a basic skill – but having such a good weight of pass helps to maintain the momentum of attacks, and can make a big difference in the grand scheme of things.
His long passing is not to be sniffed at either. Botman isn’t averse to a big switch (2.23 per 90, in the 82nd percentile of CBs in Europe’s Top 5 Leagues) and as illustrated by the pass map below, he can hit these raking diagonal passes with impressive accuracy.
A lot of our build-up play was filtered through our left last season, and hence we tended to create a lot space on the right for Fraser and Trippier. Having a player like Botman who can arrow these long passes to that flank will be a useful weapon to have in possession.
Where Does Botman Fit In?
There’s no doubt that Botman will immediately become our best centre-back, and will be starting almost every game he’s available for next season. His huge impact in possession on the left should mean that he takes the left-sided spot without question. However, there’s definitely a decision to be made in regards to who partners him.
In terms of his profile, Botman is much more of a back-footed defender (sometimes referred to as a “cat”), who’s role is to sweep up and cover behind the defensive line. Usually this type of centre-half is paired with a defender who’s more front-footed (yes, you guessed it – a “dog”), who tends to be more aggressive in duels, and more likely to come flying out to meet the ball.
Both Fabian Schär and Dan Burn fit the latter description, and this plot by @ScoutNUFC on Twitter summarises their contributions pretty neatly. Choosing between the two of them is difficult to determine and predict, and is a conversation probably best left for another time – but the bottom line is that stylistically, either Schär or Burn would have the potential to work alongside Botman.
Conclusion
After two very successful seasons at Lille, Botman will feel like he’s ready to move on to a different league and a different challenge. He’s spoken about his desire to come to the Premier League, and we’re very fortunate that Newcastle United is the club he’ll be playing for.
The supply of left-footed centre-backs is already very small, while the demand for them seems to be increasing every season. The fact that Botman is part of this exclusive group, while also still being 22 years old, a title winner, strong in a back four, and comfortable on the ball – gives him a profile which is highly desirable. There are very few (if any) players who can boast such a skillset with such high pedigree, and hence this coup is an extremely impressive one for the club.
Sven Botman will instantly become one of our best players, and considering his peak is still at least half a decade away, we’re only going to see him get better. It’s a tactically and financially smart signing for a player that would improve most teams around the continent – and it’s also a massive statement of intent.
