Rangers scouting: The aggressive Gambia international who is Leon Balogun's perfect transfer replacement

The shortlist is being exhausted although that means there are plenty of prospects to postulate over.

For as long as 18 months, Rangers have been forced to flirt with the idea of some serious upheaval in the centre of defence. Come summer 2022, any potential departures must be replaced, at least in some capacity.

John Souttar is signed and likely counting the days until he becomes officially allowed to adorn the blue of Rangers in a competitive sense, but even still, one or maybe even two more bodies are required. Leon King could also play a part potentially pushing back a more radical restructuring to 2023.

If that is a plausible timeline, then Rangers may be in luck. At the turn of the new year Molde centre-back Sheriff Sinyan becomes a free agent. 

The two fundamental questions at the heart of any scouting discourse centre around the prospective target's quality and his fit to the current style of play and existing personnel.

Let's attempt to wrestle with these notions and more.

Profile

Despite being born and raised in Oslo, Sinyan represents Gambia at international level, having made five appearances spanning back to his debut in 2019. 

The 25-year-old would provide physical continuity should he replace Connor Goldson or Leon Balogun, as his height, weight, and strength are all immediately evident and valuable tools. This trio of physical attributes also gives him some leeway when making the occasional mistake.

His recovery speed and solid upper body allow him to usurp possession from opposing forwards. Despite this, his technical and possession-based value perhaps supersedes his physical prowess, which will be discussed at length. Despite his right foot being preferred, Sinyan most often slots in as the left centre-back in Molde’s 4-2-3-1 or 4-4-2 formation. 

His experience in a back-three is limited to under an hour of play in the entirety of his career, however, this should be of little concern. Given his skill and physical profile, he really should be able to assume any role in a back-three or four.

Sinyan's statistical profile, which can be seen below is as consistently excellent as it gets for a centre-back. In the classical dog and cat dichotomy of centre-backs, Sinyan is firmly a dog. The role allows him to accrue some very impressive defensive output as he is the primary aggressive option, akin to Balogun or Calvin Bassey in a Rangers context.

Despite the sky-high raw quantitative numbers, his qualitative defensive output is also very impressive with the particular highlight being Sinyan's league-wide best defensive duel won percentage.

Appraising someone's defensive ability purely from statistics is a fruitless affair and attributing too much importance to these numbers is explicitly risky, but these numbers are overwhelmingly impressive. In possession and in front of goal, Sinyan's performance is much like Goldson or the incoming Souttar, two of the best co-signs and comparisons for a prospective Scottish Premiership centre-back.

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At Molde, Sinyan maintains responsibility in the build-up and continues to higher up the pitch and closer to the opposition goal. He is also licensed to roam and pop up in goal-scoring positions, a carbon copy of Goldson's in-possession responsibilities.

Based solely on his numerical output, Sinyan seems a perfect fit for Rangers and likely the most frugal way to replace Goldson or the perennially underrated Balogun.

Aggressive Front-Foot Defending

As previously mentioned, Sinyan is firmly in the dog camp and is skilled in coming out and aggressively taking on opposition players, though not at the behest of defensive structure or illogical risk.

As the graphic below would suggest, when given the opportunity Sinyan prefers to stand up forwards outside his own box, preemptively putting out the fire before the blaze becomes dangerous. Also, it's abundantly clear he prefers to stay on his feet, as he ranks in the lower half for PAdj slide tackles p90 amongst Eliteserien centre-backs.

If we flip the script and look at his unsuccessful duels, the largest cluster is found just outside the left side of the box, between it and the corner flag. This would suggest he struggles with wingers who cut in from the outside channel or hit the byline to cross, often a precursor to shots, as the black circles below suggest. Whether this is a genuine deficiency or partly due to an overly aggressive left-back is debatable. Still, given Rangers' territorial dominance and Bassey’s defensive ability, these situations should be limited.

Below are a few common examples of Sinyan’s front-foot defensive style. The first shows Sinyan’s aggression and role in Molde’s counter-press. Possession has just transitioned into the hand of the opposition, which forces Sinyan to step up and pressure the receiver. He slips in front of the isolated forward, takes the ball off of him and then switches the play to the less populated right-wing.

Sinyan also leverages his physical profile and aggression when defending counter-attacking movements. He is often asked or volunteers to take the risky forward step and take on the marauding forward, risking a booking should he fail. Whether due to his ability to get to a spot before the forward or his wide frame choking space, he can often stifle these transitions as seen below.

The previous two examples are wrapped into one in the form of the occurrence below. Here we see Sinyan in a counter-pressing capacity pushing up to the ball receiver and winning possession after a shoddy first touch then progressing upfield in an abundance of space.

The synthesis of technique and timing is evident, and the fundamental intangibles will prove helpful in many capacities. The risk to reward ratio requires balance, though given the Rangers context you can err on the side of risk, which is no doubt a set-up beneficial to Sinyan.

Patience and Last-Man Responsibilities

Despite his modus operandi firmly being on the front foot, Sinyan can adapt to being a patient and effective cat. His pace is the trump card as it allows him and his fellow defenders to play a high line whilst maintaining some sense of security.

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The extent of Sinyan’s defensive recoveries can be seen below, colour-coded to signify differing defensive actions. The densest cluster can be found in his own penalty area, with the vast majority being interceptions, likely a mix of headed clearances and cutting off passing lanes. The other cluster is just south of the halfway line, filled with positioning and counter-pressing actions, a combination of the already examined aggressive counter-pressing actions and picking up loose balls or misplaced passes.

Below is an excellent example of Sinyan’s ability to diffuse threatening counterattacks. The opposition forward has skirted past all but Sinyan, with the Gambian being the only line of defence between the ball and goalkeeper. Four other Molde defenders and a fellow forward are lagging behind, and Sinyan’s goal has to be to delay the forward's next action until reinforcements arrive. He does this by positioning his body directly to the forward's right, shutting down the ability to cut in and shoot on his strong foot, inadvertently forcing him wide and weak-side.

We see a similar example below, though the jeopardy is slightly lower as the situation is found with Molde’s defensive shape already established. Despite this, Ola Solbakken has beaten the Molde left-back and forces Sinyan out wide, vacating the central space. Given this he needs to delay Solbakken’s route to goal and he does by cutting off the inside channel and forcing him to move back, picking the ball of his toes whilst doing so.

Sinyan is a fantastic last-man defender, as he can leverage his physical tools to reduce the risk and threat within the situation. His long legs are multi-faceted, as primarily they allow him to cover ground quickly whilst also providing an advantage when it comes to last-ditch tackles, which he makes look relatively easy and a risk-averse action.

We can see this below, where Sinyan comes to the aid of his onrushing goalkeeper by sliding in from the side and winning the ball from a forward primed to take aim. Interestingly a few frames behind this screenshot, Sinyan moves wide of the forward to give him a clear running path, getting to a max speed quicker whilst also giving him a more sensible tackling angle.

A carbon copy of the example above is seen below, as again we see Sinyan managing to usurp the forward’s threatening position with a mix of sound technique and sheer pace and strength.

Progressing into the Middle and Final-Third

Defensive ability and stability are all well and good, but when recruiting hypothetical centre-backs for Rangers, what separates the best merited candidates are their ability on the ball and comfort in assisting build-up. Sinyan may not have the same passing range and finesse as Goldson, though he does maintain a net positive impact whilst in possession, similar to Balogun. Given Souttar’s imminent arrival, pairing Sinyan with the Scotsman would provide a perfect ball-playing balance. Though much like Balogun, Sinyan’s stardust is his ability to move with the ball which you rarely see in centre-backs at this level. Below we can see both progressive mediums plotted from the past calendar year.

Sinyan’s role in the build-up is reasonably straightforward as he is given two main tasks. Firstly, he is expected to play the ball around the back and interchange possession with the deepest midfielder, patiently waiting and playing a role in manufacturing space for the progressive members of the XI. Second and more attractive is his skill in playing long balls, circumventing the aforementioned deep midfielders. His ability to find forwards from deep is satisfactory for Rangers, though he doesn’t hit the same high standards as Goldson in this regard.

Interestingly given his aggressive defending and the ensuing high turnovers he often forces, he will from time-to-time pop up in possession in the opposition half, helping to generate a numerical superiority in advantageous situations.

Sinyan shares that marauding and aggressive running style with former Rangers defender Madjid Bougherra. Once Sinyan develops a full head of steam, it is challenging to stop as he has the flexibility in both his feet and body to duck and dive past players, similar to an elite running back in American Football.

Below is an example as he manages to manoeuvre past two Trabzonspor forwards, opening up plenty of space and passing opportunities close to the final third.

Sinyan’s ability in both progressive avenues bodes well for a fit at Rangers. In a ball-playing sense, his profile fits much better as a contingency for Balogun than Goldson, as he should be a supplementary passing option as opposed to the primary.

Aerial Threat

Despite Rangers central defender's efficacy in front of goal cooling down somewhat this season compared to the sky-high standards set the year prior, it remains a desired but supplementary characteristic for any potential centre-backs. Bassey's relative inability in the air is well-documented and the main slight against his credentials at centre-back, so guaranteeing an aerially influential centre-back this summer is pivotal.

This is precisely what Sinyan is.

He is a durable and sturdy option in a defensive capacity, using the full extent of his 188cm frame and impressive jumping leap. Below are all the defensive aerial duels Sinyan engaged in within the past 12 months, with the vast majority being successful.

Despite conventional wisdom, Sinyan’s aerial ability comes alive in an offensive capacity. Despite the graphic below showing all shots, most goals and on target attempts are headed. The raw number of goals and shots on target is outstanding, as it appears around 50% of total attempts find their way on target or in the back of the net.

Fit and Feasibility

Despite Sinyan’s contract expiring in just nine months' time, it may be challenging to get Molde to play ball in the summer window, as despite it being the last juncture they can profit, they will likely be embroiled in a title race.

If Rangers can convince them to do so, the price should be nowhere near exorbitant likely below £1.5m, and for that price there are few better options.

If the Ibrox side can afford to wait until January, even better - he could arrive for nothing. The idea of a Sinyan-Souttar partnership costing a grand total of zero is incredible.

Sinyan is a fantastic replacement for Balogun as he matches the Nigerian for the most part, and is eight years his junior. If we shift the conversation to replacing Goldson, it's a less comfortable fit; however, between him and Souttar, they have the Englishmen’s output more than covered.