Espanyol Ratings: What We Expect.

With the major league ratings due soon I have had a look over my squad and have a general idea of what I expect to see in terms of rating changes. Being a Division 5 team we struggle to sign top names and so must focus more on lower rated players and hope they get the rating they deserve. Obviously this isn’t always the case and many players have been left at low ratings and had to be sold off to bring in new potential risers. Having been at Espanyol for nearly 2 seasons this process is both time consuming and often frustrating. Obviously some of my expectations wont come off and so I’ve split them into “likely rises” and “hopeful rises” and on top of that this is SM and so ratings are pretty unpredictable. I have also only included those with potentials of 86+ and will make a shortlist of the others at the bottom.
Keepers

Tom Heaton (85>87) Likely
Do I even need to explain this one? The 30 year old has been fantastic this season and has earned many expecting a chance in goal for England. Some stats don’t look great such as 19 goals conceded in 12 games and only 3 clean sheets, but considering the squad he’s in it’s hard to blame him. Top performances against Southampton, Everton and Manchester United show he deserves a rise.

Defence

Raul Albentosa (85>86) Likely
Spending last season on loan at Malaga saw the 28 year old recieve a one rating rise from 84. Having joined Deportivo from Derby in the summer he has started all but one game this season in La Liga. With an average rating of 6.8 Albentosa has been Deportivos best centre back of the season (out performing Sidnei who is rated 87). Surely a rating of 86 is deserved despite the teams league position.

Pedro Bigas (85>86) Likely
Another one from La Liga is Las Palmas defender Bigas. His last rise came in 2013 when he went up by 5, since then he has improved further making 27 appearances last season with an average rating of 7.2. This form has been replicated this season with ratings averaging around 7.1 in his 10 showings. Considering the impressive season Las Palmas had last season he could push for 87 (or maybe I’m just being biased… probably…)

Benjamin Hubner (85>86) Likely
Joining Hoffenheim from Ingolstadt this summer the German made a slow start. Hubner was left out of the squad for the first 5 games but was a starter against his former side in the 6th league game. An impressive debut led to him being awarded a rating of over 7.85. He has started the past 7 games helping the team to an undefeated run and earning a rating of 7.2 on average.

Ragnar Klavan (87>88) Hopefully
Following his shock move to Liverpool in the summer I’ve been pretty intrigued to see how he does. Unfortunately he’s not done too much. A total of 6 appearances (4 in the league) has shown he is capable at the back with rating of around 6.85. It was disappointing to see Leiva played at CB ahead of him against Watford. The only real reason I may expect a rise is due to the level Liverpool are and that he has mad a few strong appearances.

Joseba Zaldua (85>86) Hopefully
Having started the season well appearing in 6 out of 7 games a rise looked likely. However, a foot injury has halted his season and with his return date unknown it could be costly. I hope his good start earn him his rise but if not it’s easy to see why.

Patric Lalau (85>86) Hopefully
Currently playing in Brazil Lalau has scored 4 in 19 games and assisted 4 more. My knowledge of the Brazilian league is pretty poor but Atletico MG are 4th and the league has a number of solid teams in it. Another one I hope can get a plus one but wouldn’t be shocked if he doesn’t.

Midfield

Roque Mesa (85>87) Likely
Another one from Las Palmas with the rapidly improving Roque Mesa. The midfielders value has increased by around 6x since February and has started all 12 games with pass success of over 92% this season. The 27 year old is surely going up 1 but I feel that a plus 2 would be more fitting.

Amir Abrashi (85>86) Likely
An impressive season in the Swiss league earned the 26 year old a move to newly promoted Bundesliga side Freiburg. With 9 appearances in the league and the club looking to have a solid season I’d expect the Albanian to go up to 86.

Lukas Rupp (85>87) Likely
Having had a good season in 2015/16, Rupp couldn’t save Stuttgart from relegation and was picked up by Hoffenheim in the summer. He has featured in all but one league game this season scoring twice and averaging a rating of 7.11 when he has started. On top of that the club is undefeated and so surely a rise to 86 is sure and 87 is likely.

Wing

Nathan Redmond (86>88) Likely
I’m including him as a winger despite being used as a forward at Southampton. I expected him to rise last season despite relegation and was a bit disappointed that he didn’t but it has played out well as he got a huge move to a top club where he has hit great form. 3 goals so far for a young player fresh from a new move and being used in a new position is good in my opinion and surely the 22 year old deserves a plus 2.

Nabil El Zhar (86>87) Likely
The ex-Liverpool winger has been very strong this season at Las Palmas (yeah I like these guys aha). He started the first 5 games of the season and scored twice assisting 2 more, he missed 4 games through injury but if he can get back into his early season form then he will surely go up but deserves the rise anyway.

Sabin Merino (85>86) Likely
Aged just 24, the winger hasn’t stamped his spot in the starting line up yet, however, he has featured in 7 games so far this season helping Bilbao to 8th in the table. Considering the level of the club and some decent performances I feel Merino deserved at least a plus 1.

Forwards

Sandro Wagner (86>87) Likely
Another new recruit for Hoffenheim this season having joined from Darmstadt in the summer. The tall German has started 11 out of 12 games this season scoring 5 goals. He has also netted in the cup and averaged a rating of 7.27 overall this season. Considering the teams unbeaten run and that Wagner is their current top scorer the forward deserves a rating of 87.

Guido Carrillo (86>87) Likely
The super sub for Monaco is a tricky one to predict. His side currently sit top of the French League and he has definitely had a hand to play in their success. Carrillo has scored 2 goals from 4 starts and a further 3 off the bench. With the position in the league and an average rating of 7.00 the 25 year old deserves a rise.

Ivan Santini (84>86) Likely
Since joining Caen this season the forward has been very strong. With 5 goals in 12 league appearances along with goals in the Belgian cup and league for Liege from before his move his total so far is very impressive. Playing in a poorer team it’s harder to perform well but Santini surely deserves a rise and hopefully it’ll be to 86.

Others

Erick Cabaco (80>83)
Gideon Jung (82>85)
Jean Makengo (78>80)
Paulin Puel (76>79)
Joel Pohjanpalo (82>84)
Pedro Tana (83>85)
Jorge Burgui (82>85)