Rangers transfer scouting: Nicolas Raskin's profile assessed

A 21-year-old deep-lying midfielder, already firmly established as a first-team player for Standard Liege in the Belgian Pro League. Bluntly, it would be more of a surprise if Rangers weren’t interested in a player of his profile.

Having secured the services of Todd Cantwell, the club have now recruited another energetic, talented midfielder.

💙 Welcome to #RangersFC, @n_raskin. pic.twitter.com/RVFewpwT21

— Rangers Football Club (@RangersFC) January 31, 2023

Raskin is the player most Rangers supporters wanted this window and his arrival addresses an area of the pitch that's long required investment at Ibrox, the base of midfield.

“He is the perfect midfielder for Rangers,” leading Belgian journalist Sacha Tavolieri told the Rangers Review when discussing Raskin's move. 

“He has an ability to never wait, but goes directly to his opponent and plays forward as quickly as possible, looking vertically. He also has the ability to recoup the ball and distribute it quickly. The most important thing, he doesn’t wait or play laterally, he goes towards the goal in the quickest way possible. Thinking about how to make a pass that will help the team make a step further up the pitch.

“He is a fighter, ready to go to war. He loves to make tackles and doesn’t hesitate to work for his teammates.”

Raskin is a midfielder with personality, aggression and quality on the ball. Boasting speed over the first few yards which allows him to consistently regain possession, alongside an evident strength in one-on-one duels. 

In possession he can carry the ball over distance, join the attack and create chances directly for teammates. Raskin plays forward quickly and often attempts a risky pass, possessing real technical quality.

A look at his heatmap from the Belgian top-flight this season depicts a box-to-box midfielder. Raskin doesn’t simply break up the play and hand the ball to better players. He's not merely a facilitator but also contributes significantly on the ball. 

His StatsBomb radar from this season makes for impressive reading. Remember, the closer to the boundary lines the better.

What is this telling you?

•  A passing accuracy of 83 percent could be viewed as a negative. For comparison, Steven Davis’ during the 55 season stood at 89 percent. However, it’s important to note that Raskin has been playing in a less ball-dominant team. What’s more, it would be no bad thing for this midfield to have a risk-taker, happy to lose the ball on occasion in search of a line-breaking, valuable pass.
•  0.2xG Assisted per 90 is really high total for a No.6. This is proof that Raskin doesn’t simply hand the ball to creative players, but creates chances for teammates directly by driving forwards and joining the attack. For comparison, John Lundstram’s xG Assisted this season stands at 0.03, Ryan Jack’s 0.12 and Glen Kamara’s 0.08.
• A 90th percentile xGBuildUp rating, a metric that evaluates how heavily involved a player is when their team move the ball from box-to-box, depicts a player crucial when Standard are looking to play forwards.
• Extremely high regain and tackle returns are indicative of the aggressive, proactive midfielder Raskin profiles as. He wants to dominate his zone in every sense of the word, on and off the ball.

Raskin is a quick, agile and strong ball-winner, with the physical capabilities to dominate duels. A low centre of gravity and the game intelligence to match make him difficult to bypass in the midfield. 

The below sequence summarises his overall strength as a deep-lying midfielder.

He reads his opponent's touch, looking to shift the ball onto his right foot, and runs at the white-outlined angle as opposed to the red.

Having closed the space, the youngster can make initial contact, use his body to shield the ball and win the duel before manoeuvring his way beyond the opponent and driving forwards.

It’s common to see Raskin repeat this pattern when attempting to regain the ball. He’s fast enough to get close and then break into a sprint while his opponent is receiving the ball, basing his interception on their first touch and lulling them into a false sense of security. 

The midfielder is quick, strong and mobile but knows how to use his body, anticipate an opponent’s movement and win the ball on that basis. 

Raskin’s not reliant on passing his way out of problems. Although heavily favouring his right foot, the 21-year-old is quick and agile enough to progress the ball individually. 

For the same reasons he's difficult to beat in a defensive duel, opponents can also struggle to stop Raskin when he's running forward with the ball. 

This extends to deeper zones of the pitch. Raskin’s able to twist and turn his way out of corners and act as a press-resistant outlet. Often inviting opponents into thinking they can win possession before quickly shifting away.

In this example he breaks the line himself, carrying possession for all of 40 yards through the midfield before creating a chance. It's this type of action that explains why he has a higher xG Assisted, direct chance creation, than Rangers' current deep-lying options. 

This type of space won’t always be on offer in Scotland but the Belgian’s technical quality allows for solutions. True to the judgement of Tavolieri, Raskin is direct and his first thought is normally forward.

As mentioned previously, the former Standard man’s job is not over after getting the ball through the midfield. Often in situations like the one below you’d see a No.6 provide a passing option behind the ball (outlined in red), but Raskin’s just as likely to run beyond.

Here, he recognises that there’s space available for a third-man run, again leading to him creating a chance directly. 

Enabled rather than restricted by his physicality, Raskin offers a genuine running threat from the base of midfield thanks to his engine.

Finally, what about his distribution? The midfielder is direct and intentional and as mentioned, occasionally a little over-eager while very reliant on his right foot. He looks vertically not laterally, more focused on progressing the ball than always retaining it. 

But this is something Beale’s midfield needs. Raskin will learn as he matures when to force the issue and when to circulate possession. It's probably easier to coach a player into making the odd safe pass than trying to form them into a natural risk-taker. 

The new recruit is comfortable playing long-raking diagonals and attempting to punch the ball through the lines. 

In this example, he receives a pass in the right-back area beckoning his teammate, highlighted in yellow, forwards. This creates space for the pink-highlighted wide player to go beyond.

While, at times, he'll need to focus on retaining the ball Raskin has the ability to break lines and create chacnes directly. 

Raskin has energy, aggression and bite but also a broad range of skills to be utilised when possession is regained. 

With his forward-first mentality and the natural development to come, the Belgian can help dismantle domestic defences, dominate the midfield and become the centrepiece of Beale's midfield going forwards.