The Payoff – Preview of Reviews!

As with every season, the reviews are the most intriguing part of squad building. Well timed rises can set you up for a mid season push, increase a players sale value or keep you on track for future progress. Unfortunate drops or missed rises can put you on the back foot in the league, scupper transfer plans, or annoy you so much that you destroy your own team and reputation.

Despite now sitting in Division 1, Leicester City are still heavily looking to the reviews to propel us forward, and with that in mind, here are my hopes and expectations for the upcoming (eventually) reviews.

GK – Aaron Ramsdale – 90 (+1)
Ramsdale has been our starter for a year and a half having arrived rated 88. Now at 90 he is secured in the position, and will hopefully jump up after Arsenals successful season. He has played every league minute for the Gunners as they settled for a 2nd place finish pulling off some world class saves along the way. Some major errors also popped up, especially in the run in, and with an overall theme of inconsistency I think he will be limited to only a +1. If Arsenal had been able to secure the title or he was the international #1 then there could have been a push for 92, but at this stage, I don’t believe that would be an option.

GK – Lucas Chevalier – 83 (+3)
It is always hard to judge the rises of low rated players who have broken into the 1st team, especially with the inconsistency of SM, but I think Chevalier would be very hard done by to end up at anything lower than 86. After a great loan at Ligue 2 side Valenciennes FC last season, Lille opted to give him a chance. After 6 games on the bench, Chevalier took the starting role and has played every game since. He has been the number 1 ranked U21 goalkeeper in the Top 5 leagues this season, and has been linked with a move to Man United and tipped as a future France international. With Lille finishing 5th in the league, Chevalier should be locked in at +3 at least.

GK – Stefano Turati – 82 (+2)
Whether Turati falls into the Top 5 reviews remains to be seen. He is out on loan from Sassuolo at Serie B Champions Frosinone, and so may be included in the review as part of either team. His performances this season have been exceptional playing 37 league games (he was rested for the last game of the season) in which he conceded just 24 goals and kept 20 clean sheets. This puts him 4th for Clean Sheets in Top 5 league nations (1st and 2nd Division). His progression looks promising, with the options to either remain at Frosinone for their Serie A season, or head back to Sassuolo to challenge Andrea Consigli for the starting role after a dire season for the 36-year-old. Either way, if he is to be reviewed, a +2 would be a fair return for what has been an outstanding season.

CB – Ibrahima Konate – 90 (+1)
This one is probably the biggest stretch but certainly wouldn’t be a surprise. Since the December review Konate has played 90 minutes in 21/28 of Liverpool’s matches (5 of the 7 missed were through an injury in February), as well as starting in all 3 of Frances European Qualifying matches. He has also picked up a 6.87 average this season making him the 11th best ranked CB in the Premier League (players over 15 games). Whilst on paper his season looks stop start, he has been great since the last review period, and so could well see a rise coming up.

CB – Jakub Kiwior – 85 (+1/2)
After a +2 to 85 in December and a move to Arsenal, Kiwior could see himself hitting 86 or 87 this summer. Despite not setting the world alight, Kiwior took the starting role off Rob Holding whilst William Saliba was absent, featuring in 8 games for Arsenal, as well as representing Poland at the World Cup. This is one where the move alone may be a factor in a rise, but he has given a decent account of himself too which could help in the decision too.

CB – Micky van de Ven – 84 (+3)
Joining last May, van de Ven was always seen as a long project, and that patience is paying off now. A +4 in December should be followed by another good rise this summer. He has played 90 minutes in all but 1 game for Wolfsburg this season, giving him the 2nd most league minutes of any outfield player in the Bundesliga this season. The Dutchman has attracted interest from a host of clubs, with Liverpool heavily linked with a move for him. After such a strong season a rise to 87 would be the minimum he deserves bringing him into first team back up contention for me.

RB – Bafode Diakite – 84 (+2/3)
Despite securing RB for a while with the signing of Nordi Mukiele, Diakite was a great addition for us to make as he is young and versatile with CB and LB in his locker too. After joining Lille in August, Diakite has played 36 games in all competitions, missing just 4 games, helping the team to a 5th place finish. Despite a similar season to van de Ven in terms of matches played and performance, I think a +2 is more likely here, with a chance of a +3. This is primarily based on the league and also transfer interest and international representation.

CM – Ferreira Vitinha – 89 (+1)
A landmark signing for us, Vitinha will hopefully be one of our starting CM’s for years to come. The 23-year-old has made himself a staple of the PSG team after a €41.5 million move in the summer. He has played 48 games for the French champions this season, 40 of which have been starts. He has chipped in with 2 goals and 3 assists in the league, and represented Portugal at the World Cup. It has been a solid start to life in Paris, but he will hope to improve in the future. At PSG he has potential to rise to much higher levels, making him a key long term option for me, but for now I think he will hit 90.

CM – Moises Caicedo – 88 (+2)
The second part of our long them CM plan, Caicedo’s development could be hugely impacted by his next move, but for now we focus on the present. Featuring in all but 1 of Brighton’s league games this season, Caicedo has turned in eye watering performances and has been one of the stars of the season, not just at Brighton, but in the Premier League. He has earned a 6.95 average in midfield, making him the 10th best performer in the league at the position and is now linked with a number of clubs including Arsenal and Chelsea. With some clubmates already at 90, Caicedo will surely be the next one to reach that rating.

CM – Salis Abdul Samed – 86 (+2)
One of the surprise teams of the season this year were RC Lens, who pushed PSG to the line in Ligue 1, finishing 2nd, just a point behind the Parisian powerhouse. Samed has been a key part of that success as he featured in all but 5 games (4 through suspension, 1 through injury). Playing in a defensive midfield role, Samed was one of the main reasons that Lens put up the best defensive record in Ligue 1, and 3rd best in the Top 5 leagues behind just Barcelona and Napoli. He also represented Ghana at the World Cup to add to his impressive season. His performances earned him a spot in the GFFN Ligue 1 team of the season and a contract extension at Lens as they get ready to take on the Champions League. A rise to 88 would be fitting for now, with the potential to then push on into the 90s like Seko Fofana has done.

CM – Johann Lepenant – 85 (+1/2)
Another Ligue 1 mover, Lepenant joined Lyon in the summer and has made a good start to life at the club. Featuring in 31 league games, the 20-year-old has been a regular in the team playing at both DM and CM. A 6.65 average is a fine start, but he will hope to push on as he develops at the club. For now, a +1 is probably a realistic expectation, although a +2 would also not be a shock.

CM – Fabio Miretti – 85 (+1)
The CM overload continues with another young gem. At 19, Miretti has already featured in 47 matches for Juventus, 40 of which have come this season. 22 of those this season have been starts, a stat he will surely look to build on next season. Despite this, he has been solid, although not outstanding. A loan move is possibly on the cards to get him more game time, but at 19, his increase in game time this season should warrant a rise to 86.

CM – Habib Diarra – 78 (+4)
Having played just 4 senior games in his career ahead of this season, Diarra’s role at Strasbourg was unclear heading into the season. But by matchday 4 he was a starter, and by the end of the season he is considered one of Strasbourg’s most valuable assets. Despite being naturally a DM, Diarra has been utilised consistently further up at CM and AM, as well as both wings at LM, RM and RW. His skillset seems to adapt wherever he plays ad he has picked up 3 goals and 3 assists when playing in more advanced roles. After a strong season he is now linked with a move away, with Wolves and Aston Villa both keen. Based on previous rises, a +4 to 82 is what I’m expecting.

CM – Khalil Fayad – 73 (+5)
Another promising Ligue 1 midfielder, Fayad only turned 19 last week and racked up over 700 minutes this season whilst 18. While he is not a regular yet, he has started 8 games for Montpellier, as well as coming off the bench a further 17 times. Another hard increase to judge, but I think his contribution has been similar to the first half of the season for Diarra, so a +5 to 78 would probably make sense.

AM – Martin Odegaard – 92 (+1/2)
The club captain and one of my untouchable players, Odegaard is the heart of the team, both in game at Leicester and real life at Arsenal. Starting all but 1 game in the League, Odegaard has picked up 15 goals and 8 assists for Arsenal this season earning a 7.29 average rating in the process. This put him in the Top 10 of all players in the Prem. Surprisingly there is not much else as the stats speak for themselves! I think a +1 is a guarantee, and a +2 would not be a shock at all in this scenario.

Wing – Martinelli – 90 (+2)
Another of my stars from Arsenal and another long term option for me at Leicester, Martinelli joined rated 83, and should now hit 92 in the Summer. In a career best season the Brazilian scored 15 league goals and assisted 5 more in 34 starts, making him the teams joint top scorer, as well as the 12th best performing player in the league. He is ranked 2nd for the highest rated U21 in the league, beaten only by teammate Bukayo Saka, and 4th in the Top 5 leagues behind only Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka and Jamal Musiala (over 20 games). He is in good standing to hit 92 and with that become one of my top players.

Wing – Patrick Wimmer – 85 (+2)
A returnee after breifly being sold, Wimmer is now looking like a fantastic prospect. A 6.99 average at Wolfsburg ranks him as one of the Top 10 U21 players in the Top 5 leagues this season. Despite being at a new team and suffering some injuries Wimmer netted 4 goals and assisted 8 more in 23 league starts. He is has also started Austria’s past 2 matches setting him up nicely to continue in the International team. Similarly to van de Ven, I think Wimmer should end up at 87 with a good chance of rising further as he continues to develop.

CF – Julio Enciso – 82 (+2/3)
One of the key members of the sale of Paulo Dybala, Enciso is now showing us exactly what he can do. On top of having to wait until matchday 14 to get his first minutes of the season, he only started 1 game in the opening 30 matches, contributing 1 goal in those matches. He then started 7 of the last 10 games, playing 45 minutes of 2 of those he didn’t start. To return the managers faith, he delivered 3 goals (v Chelsea, Arsenal and Man City) and assisted 2 more. His goal against Manchester City has since been voted the goal of the season. At 19-years-old, Enciso looks to be the next gem product of Brighton, and there are early rumours of clubs looking to poach him from their set up. His overall season warrants a +2, but the run in could see that boosted up to a +3 to 85.

As always, it is hard to judge, and so I am sure some of these wont come off, or some will be over or under compensated, but time will tell (lots of time apparently).
Hopefully they will continue with Germany soon!