Jesús Rodriguez: Real Betis’ Diamond in the Rough
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Real Betis are having another fairly promising season in LaLiga. Sat in sixth place, one of their bright sparks in recent weeks has been the emergence of young winger Jesús Rodríguez. Having started the season playing for the club’s B team Betis Deportivo in the Spanish third division, the U19 international has emerged as a key figure in the first-team and impressed in LaLiga — quite the step up for the Betis Cantera product. So, what is it about Rodríguez that has caught the eye of manager Manuel Pellegrini.
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Pace to burn
The first thing you notice about Rodríguez is his blistering pace. This isn’t the nippy pace you might expect from a young winger but explosive and powerful sprinter like running. The youngster’s 6-foot frame, tall for a winger, and long stride length mean he can generate the kind of top speed most wide players could only dream of.
Indeed, the player that Rodríguez’s running style is most reminiscent of is perhaps Gareth Bale. He even has a goal in his repertoire comparable to the Welshman’s famous destruction of Marc Bartra. Facing the Recreativo Huelva defence in Spain’s third tier, the then Betis player proved too quick for lower tier defenders to handle, bursting from his own half to score a stunning solo goal.
Jesus Rodriguez picks up the ball in the Betis Deportivo half
Two players attempt to stop the youngster’s progress
Rodríguez beats both defenders to go through on goal
Watching Rodríguez, you can see that this is typical of his approach to dribbling. The winger thrives in open spaces and in transition, where his top speed is already unmatchable for most defenders. He will simply take a big touch into space and the defender can’t stay with him.
With such physical attributes it is unsurprising that Rodríguez was one of the most prolific dribblers in the third tier. When defenders couldn’t stop him, they were forced to foul him, leading to Rodríguez being in the 99th percentile of wingers in the league for fouls won. Rodríguez won over 4.5 fouls per 90 minutes played.
Transition to LaLiga
What is most impressive about Rodríguez’s season to date is the way he his dribbling has transitioned to LaLiga. Whilst it is early days for the player’s senior career, he is already appearing near the top of the league’s dribbling statistics.
In 5.3 90s no player in La Liga has attempted as many take-ons as Rodríguez, with a respectable success rate of 40% of those successful. Rodríguez is also one of the most fouled players in La Liga, mirroring his statistics in the third division. Rodríguez’s athletic gifts are such that the step up in defender quality from the third tier of Spanish football to LaLiga has had little effect on his dribbling statistics.
He is already an outstanding outlet for a Betis team that can otherwise be narrow and indirect with players like Isco, Pablo Fornals and Giovani Lo Celso preferring to operate in central areas. Rodríguez’s roadrunner-like play style gives them a valuable threat on the break and can stretch opposition defences to create space for these players.
Lack of penalty area impact
However, the young winger’s other statistics are much less impressive. Rodríguez is dispossessed frequently whilst offering little in terms of expected goal output. This is a theme shared with his third division performances.
From watching him play you can see why he struggles to make a meaningful impact in the opposition final third. Rodríguez is not the kind of player who consistently beats opponents with quick footwork, instead preferring to go past defenders with space to outrun them. In congested areas this means he can find it tough to get going.
His higher centre of gravity also makes it relatively easy for defenders to disrupt his dribbling in tight areas. Even when he does get beyond a fullback into the penalty area, he is frequently playing the final pass at a stretch or off balance.
Notable taller wingers like Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo had to bulk up physically to withstand the kind of challenges Rodriguez currently struggles with. Both of those players also possessed incredible ball striking which meant they didn’t need to beat players in tight areas to be impactful, not needing to penetrate the box to be a goal threat or provide dangerous crosses to teammates.
At just 19 Rodríguez has time to develop these skills, but it is far from a sure thing he ever becomes truly comfortable facing deep lying defences. It’s an issue that has capped the careers of other open space reliant dribblers like Adama Traoré or Moses Simon. If a player can only threaten on the dribble with the kind of spaces provided by counter attacks, then there’s a ceiling to the kind of team that they can regularly start for.
However, being an elite athletic talent is an excellent starting point. And, as seen in the cases of players like Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo, provides quite the base to launch from if other elite skills can be developed.
Equally, the floor for a player with such gifts is decently high. Rodríguez’s athleticism alone ensures he is a contributor to a midtable LaLiga side and it’s unlikely he drops far below this level if he remains healthy. Even in a case where he doesn’t develop other aspects to his game, he can still provide an option to stretch opponents for more defensive sides or be an impactful substitute option against tired legs.
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Defensive effort
Another area where Rodríguez’s exceptional athleticism is impactful is in the defensive side of his game. He has already become a bit of a fan favourite at Betis in part because of his high work rate and ability to cover the ground defensively.
Rodríguez wins more tackles than any winger in La Liga and is an active participant in the Seville side’s press. Per Statsbomb he is in the 99th percentile for regaining the ball through pressing.
Potential to play as a wing-back
The winger is an enthusiastic defender, and it is difficult for opposition fullbacks to escape from a player that can cover the ground so quickly. With a bit of polishing this is a player who could well suit playing as a wing-back in a 3-5-2 or 3-4-3 system.
This would allow Rodríguez the open spaces he thrives in whilst making use of his work rate and pace on the defensive side of the pitch. It also minimises the drawbacks of using him in advanced areas where he can struggle to be impactful.
The winger to wing-back transition is a career path that has been followed by other elite athletic prospects like Alphonso Davies, Achraf Hakimi and even the previously mentioned Gareth Bale, who played as a fullback until he demonstrated the ability to dominate further up the pitch. Allowing them to play at a higher level than if they had remained in a more advanced role.
Based on the player Rodríguez is at this time, wing-back may be the position in which he is most likely to reach the top levels of the game. His work rate and speed would allow him to cover a whole flank whilst the threat he offers transitioning the ball into open space would be difficult to stop.
Overall
In summary Rodriguez is a very fun player with one already outstanding asset in his open space dribbling. He has a lot to work on but the versatility offered by his athletic attributes and his attitude make it possible his career could go in any number of directions from here. If you are going to be a player reliant on a singular skill, then dribbling is a pretty good one to go with.
He is unlikely to become a top-level player without significant improvement in his weaker areas, however the floor provided by his existing talents ensure he is a name that fans should expect to see in Europe’s top divisions in some capacity for years to come.
By: Luke Petty / @petty_luke
Featured Image: @GabFoligno / Angel Martinez / Getty Images
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